Harry Willson, a top Gauteng competitor, with the pigeon he bought at Chris van Jaarsveld’s auction for R13 600.
There are various categories of points champions in pigeon racing, which are awarded at club, union/federation or combined level. Participating fanciers are automatically included in all categories.
All Birds To Count Points Champion
A lthough this category gives awards for different distances, it generally honours the grand champion at the end of the season. All positions scored by all birds are totalled and the fancier with the most points wins this category. Without very good pigeons and competitive scores in most races, you cannot expect to win this category and you may need a few spare pigeons to compensate for unexpected losses. When there are a number of tough races, you need additional rested pigeons to achieve a decent score. Single Birds To Count Points Champion I n this category, only the points of the first bird to score in all race events are totalled and the fancier with the highest score wins. The advantage of this system is that it caters for the fancier with a small team and exceptional pigeons. The only disadvantage is that a fancier may not own enough reserve pigeons that are sufficiently rested to see him or her through the season.
Classic Race Events
Points Champion P restigious races such as the Yearling National, the Two-year-old Challenge and the Old Bird Championships are called the classics. The fancier scoring the highest number of combined points in this category is crowned the Classic Champion. Careful preparation and focused training are essential to score well in classic races. The best birds in an area participate, and a fancier must score in each race to attain the best result overall.
Club Champion
Some clubs are at a disadvantage if the birds have to return to the lofts against prevailing southwesterly or northwesterly winds, as is the case in Gauteng. uch fanciers, who must own exceptional pigeons and have a consistent and disciplined programme, do not generally win the champion points league of the larger organisations.
Division Champion Organisations in larger cities contain divisions, which normally have eastern, western and middle boundaries. fancier can thus be club champion, division champion or grand champion and can compare the strength of his or her performance at the different levels.
Best Bird Champion
The overall points champion pigeon must score competitively as many times as possible. There is more and more competition in this category, and the winning birds have often scored at the top in eight or more races during the season. Many fanciers withdraw their champions and retire them to the stock loft before the season is completed.
Short-distance Champion
Depending on the area, these races are held in colder climates at the start of the racing season. highly disciplined trapping system is to be introduced to avoid wasting time during the birds’ return. Middle-distance Champion consider this the most competitive category besides the classics, and it also pays the most prize money. Long-distance Champion You generally need older and more experienced birds, but even so you still risk losing very good pigeons during these tough events. – Thomas Smit ([email protected] or call (011) 680 4778). |fw
