Gaztedi Sokatira Taldea to take ceremonial kick-off against Atlético

Members of Gaztedi Sokatira Taldea, a local Tug of War club, will take a ceremonal kick-off before Saturday's match at San Mamés against Atlético Madrid.

Athletic Club would like to pay tribute to the Biscay-based club, who recently became world champions once again.

The team recently returned from the Tug of War World Championships, this year held in Holten, the Netherlands. With the coronavirus pandemic having impacted previous editions of the competition, Gaztedi encountered a wider tournament and strengthened rivals, a circumstance that makes their triumph all the more worthy.

Gaztedi won the gold medal in their favourite event, the 560 kilogramme. The victory meant they defended the world title won last year in Getxo, doing so against Swiss team, 'The Sins', the exact same opponent they faced for the gold medal in 2021.

Once the club events were over, all eight members of Gaztedi represented The Basque Country in the national World Championships. After getting through the group phase without any issues they defeated Taiwan in the semi-finals.

The Basques were unable to repeat the double they achieved in Getxo. They lost against Switzerland in the final, although not without controversy caused by some refereeing decisions, settling for the silver medal.

Founded in Laukiz in 1961, Gaztedi has has climbed to the highest level of a sport which has a long tradition in the Basque Country.