This impressive result from Agen over 888km fits in perfectly in the already extensive palmares of Batenburg-Van De Merwe. This is the order in which his pigeons were clocked:
1st-5th-17th-37th-50th-52nd-77th-86th-95th-etc. against 5,930 p.
Hugo had basketed 100 yearlings and 46 of them claimed a national top result. All pigeons had completed six races of up to 300km as youngsters. “This year they were basketed from the very first race, up until two weeks before Agen”, the grandmaster explains. Their longest flight was Blois, which was 516 km. The entire racing team had eggs in their bowl; some had eggs of 10 days old, others had a three days old youngster. “Agen has always been the first important race for my pigeons. This is a crucial race, since this racing team is supposed to defend the loft’s honour in the coming years.” If the result from Agen gives us an indication of what is yet to come, then he can look toward the future with great confidence!