The winner of the 296th Alka tournament in the town of Sinj is Ante Zorica, who triumphed on Sunday after defeating Kristijan Bikic and winning nine points.
This is the second time that the 27 year-old Zorica won the Alka tournament. He won the tournament for the first time in 2009.
Alka is a traditional lancing tournament which has been held every first Sunday in the month of August in town of Sinj since 1715 in tribute to the victory of locals over Ottoman Turkish invaders.
Alka is also the name of the object used in the tournament; it is made of two concentric rings (diameter of inner being 35.1 mm, and 131.7 mm of outer one) connected with three bars. The object is hung on a rope 3.32 metres above the race track. The contestant rides his horse down the race track and tries to hit the central ring of alka with his spear in full gallop. Depending on which part of the alka he hits, he receives from 1 to 3 points. The contest consists of three rounds. Only men born in Sinj and nearby villages can take part in the Alka.
Today's tournament was attended by President Ivo Josipovic, Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor, Parliament Speaker Luka Bebic and other officials.
