History of Corrida de Argolinha
Originally played in the northeastern backlands of Brazil, Corrida de argolinha — called “Ringlet’s Race” in English — dates back to the sixteenth century, when Portuguese colonists brought the now-celebrated game to South America.
Medieval knights were the first to participate in Corrida de argolinha, showcasing their spear-handling abilities while riding a horse. The ringlet in Corrida de argolinha symbolized a physical ring, which would be given to the lady of the winning knight at the end of the competition. In colonial Brazil, the game represented a battle between the Catholics and the Moors.
For centuries now, Corrida de argolinha has become popular throughout Brazil, although the horse racing game remains a particularly significant component of Northeastern culture.
What is Corrida de Argolinha
Nowadays, Corrida de argolinha is played at Brazilian festivals such as Festa Junina, or Saint John’s Festival, which takes place in June each year.
Participants separate into two teams of six to win the competition. On occasion, they will dress in traditional attire while playing the game. In these cases, the knights wear white uniforms, and those representing the Christians add blue accents to their clothing and horses.
Ultimately, the team that catches the most ringlets wins the competition. Corrida de argolinha is very popular, but also quite simple. Participants need nothing more than a spear, a ringlet and a horse to engage in a proper game of Corrida de argolinha.
How to play?
In a modern game of Corrida de argolinha, players divide into two teams of six participants, and each one selects a single player to begin the game. This ensures that for each round, the “disputes” will take place between pairs, with one member from the blue team and another member of the red team competing for the winning title.
By the end of the game, all of the Knights will have played against another participant from the opposing team. The knights ride their horses approximately twenty meters down a flat field to play, stopping where the ringlet is suspended by an arch. Then, the Knights — still on horseback — must catch the ringlet with their spear and give it to the judge.
On both teams, each one of the six riders receives an individual score. At the end of the competition, the team with the most points wins. Although there are designated winners and losers in Corrida de argolinha competitions, the game is celebratory in nature and illustrates the impact of the Portuguese on modern and colonial Brazilian culture.
Corrida de argolinha has become very popular in Brazil, and as such, it only makes sense that there are several variations of the game. One variation of Corrida de argolinha is more of an individual competition where, rather than dividing into two teams of six, the same knight rides his horse six times, and of the two teams, the knight with the best score wins the game.
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