Big Shots for September 13, 2011

After too long a layoff, Big Shots is back for the Rugby World Cup in Auckland, the America's Cup in Plymouth, England, and the elephant polo King's Cup in Hua Hin, Thailand. That's more than enough to raise your cups to, but we also paint flags on sheep in Denedin, New Zealand, and fight over their carcasses in Guiyang, China. We take in the annual Palio horse race in Sienna, Italy, the USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado, and traditional boat racing on the River Brahmaputra in Suwalkuchi, India. As usual, there's much more. ( 36 photos total)

Giraffa neighborhood rider Andrea Mari reacts after winning the Palio, the famous break-neck bareback horse race around Piazza del Campo, the main square in Siena, Italy on August 16, 2011. The annual Palio pits Siena neighborhoods against one another, and each puts up a horse and rider to race three times around the slippery, dirt covered cobblestone track. (AP Photo/Paolo Lazzeroni)

Nyjer Morgan of the Milwaukee Brewers plays to the fans as the Brewers defeat the Houston Astros on September 2, 2011 in Houston. (Bob Levey/Getty Images) #

Christina McHale serves to Maria Kirilenko during their match at the U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York September 2, 2011. (REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton) #

Australia's Radiki Samo (right) exchanges a Hongi with a member of the welcoming party during a ceremony for the Australian Rugby World Cup team in Auckland September 6, 2011. (REUTERS/Nigel Marple) #

A New Zealand All Blacks fan attends an official welcome ceremony for the Rugby World Cup in Auckland September 3, 2011. (REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth) #

Saimaiti Aishan, a Uighur acrobat, hangs on a tightrope between two hot air balloons as he fails in an attempt to set a 100-meter height record in Langshan, China August 6, 2011. (REUTERS/China Daily) #

Swiss tightrope walker Freddy Nock rests on the carrying cable of the Corvatsch Cable Car downwards from the Corvatsch mountain station 3,303 meters above sea level, near Silvaplana, Switzerland on August 24, 2011. Nock was attempting a new world record by doing seven summits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in seven days. (AP Photo/Keystone/Arno Balzarini) #

A participant sends his opponent into the water during the 'Fischerstechen - fisherman joust' competition at Lake Staffelsee in Seehausen, Germany on August 15, 2011. (REUTERS/Michaela Rehle) #

Athletes competing in single bamboo drifting perform during the 9th National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities of the People's Republic of China on September 11, 2011 in Guiyang, China. (Feng Li/Getty Images) #

Seen from the water, Gary Hunt competes in a cliff diving event in Yalta, Ukraine on September 4, 2011. (AP Photo/Samo Vidic) #

Christopher Laker of the U.S. competes in the Free Ski Slopestyle Mens Final during day six of the Winter Games NZ at Snow Park on August 18, 2011 in Wanaka, New Zealand. (Hannah Johnston/Getty Images) #

High school students play basketball during their friendly match on a group of desolate volcanic islets that Seoul and Pyongyang call Dokdo, and Tokyo calls Takeshima, on August 24, 2011. The ownership of the islets is disputed between the countries. (REUTERS/Park Ji-Ho/Yonhap) #

Competitors in the men's eight semifinals of the FISA Rowing World Championships leave wakes in Lake Bled on August 31, 2011 in Bled, Slovenia. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images) #

Indian villagers take part in a traditional boat race on the River Brahmaputra at Suwalkuchi, India on August 30, 2011. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath) #

Kenyan runner Julius Kipego Ketter cools himself down after winning the 17th edition of Medellin's International Half Marathon on September 11, 2011, in Medellin, Colombia. (RAUL ARBOLEDA/AFP/Getty Images) #

Katarina Macova of Slovakia paddles her way to the bronze medal in the women's C1 at the ICF Canoe/Kayak Slalom World Championships in Cunovo, Slovakia on September 11, 2011. (REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa) #

Oracle Racing Coutts of the U.S. competes in a time trial during the second day of racing in the America's Cup in Plymouth, England on September 11, 2011. (REUTERS/Kieran Doherty) #

Participants pass the Casato curve in front of spectators during the Palio horse race in Siena, Italy on August 16, 2011. (FABIO MUZZI/AFP/Getty Images) #

Players battle for the ball during the annual King's Cup elephant polo tournament in Hua Hin, Thailand on September 6, 2011. The King's Cup tournament is held to promote elephant conservation. (PORNCHAI KITTIWONGSAKUL/AFP/Getty Images) #

Sheep, painted in the colors of World Cup participating countries (left to right) Argentina, Italy, Romania and New Zealand, graze on September 11, 2011 in Dunedin, New Zealand. (David Rogers/Getty Images) #

Riders compete for a sheep carcass during the 9th National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities of the People's Republic of China on September 12, 2011 in Guiyang, China. (Feng Li/Getty Images) #

A 1929 Bugatti 49 (right) sports car driven by Joerg Koenig drives ahead of Alexander Vonow in a 1928 Alfa Romeo 6C 1500 sports car through a steep turn during a race demonstration at the Offene Rennbahn cycling track in Zurich on July 26, 2011. (REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann) #

Jeremiah Ranegar, a support team member of BMC Cycling, waits to hand out musettes, or food bags, to riders after the descent from Monarch Pass near Monarch, Colo. during the first stage of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge on August 23, 2011. (AP Photo/The Denver Post, Helen H. Richardson) #

Jose Antonio Hermida Ramos from Spain competes at the men's cross country event at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Champery, September 3, 2011. (REUTERS/Valentin Flauraud) #

A photo finish shows Yulia Zaripova (right) of Russia win the women's 3000 meter steeplechase final at the IAAF World Championships in Daegu August 30, 2011. (REUTERS/Seiko/Handout) #

The Miao ethnic minority dancers perform during the Opening Ceremony for the 9th National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities of the People's Republic of China on September 10, 2011 in Guiyang, China. (Feng Li/Getty Images) #

Nigerian soldiers attend the African Cup of Nations 2012 qualifying match between South Africa and Niger in Niamey, Niger on September 4, 2011. (SIA KAMBOU/AFP/Getty Images) #

Samantha Stosur climbs into the stands to celebrate with friends and family after defeating Serena Williams to win the U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York on September 11, 2011. (REUTERS/Mike Segar) #

The Green Bay Packers' Randall Cobb celebrates with fans after a 108-yard touchdown run on a kickoff during an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints on September 8, 2011, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer) #

Australia Wallabies' Ben Alexander reacts after scoring a try during their Rugby World Cup match against Italy at North Harbour Stadium in Auckland September 11, 2011. (REUTERS/Jacky Naegelen) #

The Denver Broncos' Brandon Lloyd (bottom) and Oakland Raiders' Matt Giordano reach for the ball during an NFL football game on September 12, 2011 in Denver. (AP Photo/Joe Mahoney) #

Swiss Alpine wrestler Matthias Sempach (top) fights against Benno Studer during the Unspunnen festival in Interlaken, Switzerland on September 4, 2011. (REUTERS/Ruben Sprich) #

FC Porto's Rolando Fonseca (left) and Vitoria Setubal's Diego Silva fall in the net after a clash in a Portuguese League soccer match at the Dragao Stadium in Porto, Portugal on September 9, 2011. (AP Photo/Paulo Duarte) #

England's Ravi Bopara dives into his crease during the fourth one-day international cricket match against India at Lord's cricket ground in London September 11, 2011. (REUTERS/Philip Brown) #

Kaohsiung, Taiwan's Chun-Yen Kuo attempts to reach a double by Mexicali, Mexico's Carlos Arellano in the second inning of their game at the Little League World Series on August 18, 2011, in South Williamsport, Pa. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) #

Pablo Villalobos of Spain lies on the ground after the men's marathon at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea on September 4, 2011. (REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won) #

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Big Shots for September 13, 2011