56º world press photo: (2º prémio - observed portraits - stories)
Bullfighter's Comeback
Olivenza, Spain
Juan José Padilla adjusts his montera (bullfighter’s hat) before going into the ring for his comeback bullfight.
Spanish bullfighter Juan José Padilla (38), known as the ‘Cyclone of Jerez’, lost the sight in one eye and has partial paralysis of the face, after being gored by a bull in October 2011. The bull slammed one of its horns into Padilla’s jaw, and gouged out his left eye. Padilla needed substantial reconstructive surgery, and a titanium plate implant. Five months later he made a comeback, in the southwestern town of Olivenza. After the fight, Padilla was carried from the ring on the shoulders of a fellow bullfighter, an honor reserved for the very best performers.
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