A competitor tries to grab a flag as he slips off the "gostra", a pole covered in grease, during the religious feast of St Julian, patron of the town of St Julian's, outside Valletta August 26, 2012. In the traditional "gostra", a game stretching back to the Middle Ages, young men and women have to make their way to the top and try to uproot one of the flags to win prizes.DARRIN ZAMMIT LUPI/Reuters