Castellers de Vilafranca completed four major human towers at the Santa Tecla First Sunday castells event in Plaça de la Font, Tarragona, on Sunday 20 September. For local spectators, the result put the Vilafranca group’s full programme safely on the record ahead of the Concurs de Castells competition on 4 October.

Castells are traditional Catalan human towers built by teams known as colles. In castell terminology, a tower is described by the number of people in each level and its height: a 3 de 10, for example, has three people across each main level and rises to ten levels. A construction is counted as completed only when it is built and dismantled safely.

According to Tarragona21, Vilafranca completed a 3 de 9 with folre and agulla, a 3 de 10 with folre and manilles, a 5 de 9 with folre, and an eight-level pillar with manilles. A folre is an additional supporting tier, while manilles are a further reinforcing level used on the largest structures.

Two ten-level attempts fall during dismantling

Colla Vella dels Xiquets de Valls did not complete its 4 de 10 with folre and manilles. The Valls group built the tower to its highest point, but it collapsed as the seventh level began to descend, according to the report published by Reusdigital.cat.

Colla Jove Xiquets de Tarragona also attempted a 3 de 10 with folre and manilles, but the structure broke up while the children at the top were coming down. The group subsequently completed a 4 de 9 with folre, a 3 de 9 with folre and a seven-level pillar.

Xiquets recover the ‘magic triplet’

Xiquets de Tarragona completed the tripleta màgica, or “magic triplet”, for the first time in two years. The term refers to completing three demanding structures in one appearance: the 5 de 8, the 3 de 9 with folre and the 4 de 9 with folre.

  • The 5 de 8 is known locally as the catedral, or “cathedral”, because of its broad five-person structure.
  • The group then completed the 3 de 9 with folre.
  • It completed the 4 de 9 with folre after an initial setup was stopped.

La Ciutat reported that Vilafranca’s all-completed programme was the best performance seen at this particular Santa Tecla First Sunday event. Tarragona21 also reported that the day included seven top-tier gamma extra constructions, the category used for the most technically demanding castells.

Reported by reusdigital.cat, Tarragona21, Ràdio Ciutat de Tarragona, La Ciutat, Infocamp, RTVVilafranca, 3Cat, Ajuntament de Tarragona, Castellers de Vilafranca.