Alkar Ante Zorica from Hrvace won the 304th Bara, the first competition of this year’s Sinjska Alka festivities.
Zorica won by eight points, with two hits in the middle and one hit worth two points. The Alkar Duke tied two meters of green cloth to his winning spear, a symbol of victory at the Bara. Zorica also won a bronze plaque for himself and his Alkar boy, and even received a cash prize from the Alkar Knights Society of 15,000 kuna, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on August 2, 2019.
Zorica was born in 1984 and is from the town of Hrvace. By education, he is an administrative lawyer employed by the Red Cross City Society in Sinj as a director. Zorica is an accomplished rider and the third Alkar from his family. He is a trainer at the Gallop Club “Vreba” in Hrvace. He made his debut at the Sinjska Alka in 2005 though he finally held a spear in the competition in 2008.
Zorica is the most celebrated Alkar among the active participants today. He is the winner of the 294th, 296th and 298th Sinjska Alka and the ceremonial Sinjska Alka in Vukovar. In his trophy treasure trove, Zorica had previously won the Bara in 2009.
The competition for the 304th Bara was held in front of more than 5,000 spectators. The ceremonial lodge included the leaders of the Alkar Knights Society, civil and military authorities and their guests, led by VAD President Dr. Stipe Jukić, Sinj Mayor Kristina Križanac, and Major Dražen Mazalin, Commander of the Engineering Battalion from the barracks of the 12th HV Brigade.
In the Bara competition, the Alkars achieved excellent results in hitting the alka target. In the first and third races, they nailed a total of 22 punts. In the first race, they marked the middle three times, and in the third, only one run missed the smallest alka circle. The second race was fantastic. The Alkars hit a total of 31, nailing five in the middle, four for two points and eight for one point, without a single miss.
On Saturday, starting at 5:30 pm, the Čoja competition will be held. Before the competition, around 30 historical military units from Croatia and the neighboring countries will parade through the streets of Sinj and the Alka racetrack.
The central Sinjska Alka competition will be held on Sunday at 4:30 pm.
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