A violent downpour hit Piazza del Campo while the horses were between the ropes, and the Palio di Siena has been postponed until Wednesday, July 3. Impossible to run with the tuff completely wet; a quarter of an hour after the horses and jockeys had left the Palazzo Pubblico's entrance hall, a cloud that had appeared threateningly during the historical procession played a nasty trick on the many people crowded in the square to watch the career dedicated to Our Lady of Provenzano. So everything was postponed until Wednesday at 7pm, when the contrade will re-enter the canapi in the same order as fate had decided: Pantera (Panther), Valdimontone (Valley of the Ram), Nicchio (Seashell), Giraffa (Giraffe), Civetta (Little Owl), Leocorno (Unicorn), Bruco (Caterpillar), Oca (Goose), Onda (Wave) and Lupa (She-Wolf) in a run-up. The order sees right next to the two pairs of rivals: Nicchio-Valdimontone and Owl-Leocorno. In the quarter hour of the move, before the rain poured into Piazza del Campo, mossiere Bartolo Ambrosione had called the quarters out of the ropes three times. On Wednesday, however, the historic procession, which ended regularly before the rain, will not be held again. The last Palio postponed with horses between the large ropes was in July 1991, at that time the reason was the onset of darkness after a very long move.
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