This declaration, approved on Monday, July 13, at the proposal of the Minister of Universities, Science, Innovation and Culture, Migdalia Machín, grants the game the highest legal protection. The objective is to facilitate the development of public policies aimed at its preservation, promotion, and dissemination to prevent its disappearance.
Under the official designation of “Traditional Palo Game, Quintero Style in El Hierro,” this recreational manifestation is based on the teachings of Master Juan Francisco “Piloto” Quintero Zamora. The discipline is characterized by its attack and defense rules, with descending and ascending lateral blows that require constant synchronization between hand and foot.
Traditionally, this activity was limited to closed and family settings, used as a method of training and response to an attack with a stick. The current practice aims to simulate a disarm, by opening the opponent's guard.
The file, initiated by the Cabildo of El Hierro, has favorable reports from the University of La Laguna (ULL), the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), and the Museum Service of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria. The approval has the unanimous support of the Canary Islands Heritage Council and is part of Law 11/2019, of April 25, on Cultural Heritage of the Canary Islands.
