At Canada's biggest rodeo, the starting gun is fired in the fight over Alberta separation
The Calgary Stampede has become a focal point for political tension regarding a potential referendum on Alberta's independence from Canada. Political leaders are using the event to campaign for national unity against growing separatist sentiment.
Why it matters
The potential separation of a major province poses a significant threat to Canadian national stability and political cohesion.
Figure caption, Watch: Albertans weigh in on independence from Canada
Over a million people descend on the Calgary Stampede every year to marvel at the iconic chuckwagon race, a sport invented in the Albertan city where carriage drivers race teams of horses around the track to the sound of pounding hooves, or be amazed by the speed of bareback riders racing in First Nations horse relays.
The 'Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth' is the marquee event on Alberta's summer calendar, a distinctly western Canadian spectacle where political leaders also have to test their mettle, judged on the quality of their pancake flips at community Stampede breakfasts and their ability to pull off a cowboy hat.
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