Pigeon racing is not a hobby for the faint of heart. This weekend in sunny yet relentless Spain, that reality became painfully clear. We are talking about OLR Lasterie-Zwiep Murcia Spain, an organization that has done everything by the book from day one. Peter Lasterie and Hendri Zwiep built a state of the art loft in Abanilla in 2024 with a single goal: to provide a fair, professional, and transparent competition for the international elite. They succeeded in doing exactly that.
A Selection of Iron and Blood
If you only look at the final race results, you miss the bigger picture. This season began with an impressive field of 1531 pigeons. The road to the final was no pleasure cruise. Through ten training sessions and four grueling hotspots, the birds were tested to their very core. The fact that only 349 warriors remained for the grand final of 460 kilometers from Pinzon (Sevilla) speaks volumes about the severity of the Spanish “purgatory”.
This massive attrition during preparation proves that conditions in the Murcia region are on a completely different level than what we are used to in the north. It is a natural selection where every minor weakness is immediately punished by the heat and treacherous winds. Peter and Hendri did not “lose” these pigeons. The Spanish wilderness simply allowed only the very strongest to enter the final battle.
The Invisible Wall Above Sevilla
Friday morning, March 27, at 09:00:00 AM, the crates were opened. What should have been a triumphal march for a prize pool of 135,000 euros turned into a battle of attrition. Nature decided to slam the door shut. A steady north easterly wind of approximately 15.5 km/h formed an invisible wall for 460 kilometers. Where we hoped for a spectacle of speed, we received a lesson in pure survival.
Hendri Zwiep admitted he is “sick to his stomach” that so few pigeons have reached the loft after the first day. In a sport where people often point fingers, these men choose complete transparency and sincerity.
The Status at 16:00: A True Test of Character
Now, more than 31 hours after release, the harsh reality is visible in the figures:
Total Arrivals: Only 66 out of the 349 finalists have safely landed at the loft so far, which is roughly 19 percent.
Average Speed: The speed of the latest arrivals has dropped to an unprecedented 255.54 m/min, proving that the birds fought for every single meter.
Character Flight: The fact that over thirty pigeons have arrived between this morning and now shows that the true “wall breakers” never give up until they reach their home in Abanilla.
The Heroes: The Top 10
Despite the brutal conditions, there are always those rare athletes that achieve the impossible. This year’s winners have shown they are made of the right stuff to win against the elements. The absolute king of this edition is Steffen Sommer from Germany. His bird, DV 04465-25-3805, managed to hit the trap first with a speed of 1113.28 m/min.
The Official Final Top 10 (460 km):
Rank | Fancier | Ring Number | Speed (m/min) | Arrival Time |
1 | Steffen Sommer (DE) | DV 04465-25-3805 | 1113.2803 | 15:53:11 |
2 | Dutchfield (NL) | NL 25-1545798 | 1102.1264 | 15:57:22 |
3 | Shannonside Boys (IE) | IHU 25-S 096351 | 1101.6359 | 15:57:33 |
4 | Team Hullegie 1 (NL) | NL 25-1531961 | 1101.3348 | 15:57:40 |
5 | Pv de Verwachting 5 (NL) | NL 25-1162755 | 1098.8495 | 15:58:37 |
6 | Team Schalen-Bakker 1 (NL) | NL 25-1532879 | 1080.4877 | 16:05:44 |
7 | Team Utrecht (NL) | NL 25-1165017 | 1079.4435 | 16:06:08 |
8 | Team Folkers – Van Engen (NL) | NL 25-1537868 | 1079.3156 | 16:06:11 |
9 | Mark Ro (DE) | DV 06233-25-236 | 1061.3858 | 16:13:23 |
10 | P vd Haar / B Jansen (NL) | NL 25-1579886 | 1050.8117 | 16:17:45 |
Justice for Passion
Sometimes you do everything right and the puzzle pieces still do not fall into place. That is the raw reality of pigeon racing at the highest level. Peter and Hendri, the pigeon world has deep respect for your integrity. You created a filter through which only the absolute world top can pass. Those 66 pigeons currently on the loft? They are the legends of tomorrow. You cannot control the wind, but you can control the passion with which you run this race. And that is worth its weight in gold.
Jan de Wijs
The Pigeon Boss
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