Just back from a trip to Italy, and I am pleased to report that my daughter Siân (age 16) won a bareback horse race, representing Coventry in the Paliodonna di Udine.

'Palio' races are bareback horse races held in Italy since medieval times. The Udine Palio, first
recorded in 1334, is unique in that it is for female jockeys. The race was revived in 1994 after a
lapse of about 300 years, and is held on the second weekend in September on a track erected
around a park in the town centre.

The event, stretching over 4 days, is a festival of food, arts, crafts and traditional music as well as horse racing.
My wife and I have performed as a folk duo ('Pavane' of course)in previous years.
There is an art competition featuring pictures on the theme of women and bareback riding.

Teams are invited to compete. There are three groups, one being the 'Borgos' or areas within
Udine. The second group comprises teams from other towns in Italy, and the third group are teams
from towns in other European countries.

There is a separate competition for each group, and a grand final for the winners of each group.
Unfortunately, there was a false start in the grand final, and my daughter fell and broke her collar bone, so she couldn't compete in that.