There are races where one early pigeon makes the headline. And then there are races where the entire team tells the real story.
For Huub Hermans from Born, the Sourdun race on 12 September 2026 clearly belonged to the second category. After two nights in the basket, his young racing pigeons faced 669 competitors in Vlieggebied 2 Midden Limburg over 328.609 kilometres.
Once again, two old pigeons managed to stay ahead of the Hermans youngsters. But immediately behind them came Huub.
His first arrival, NL.26-8257782, was clocked at 14:14:02 with a velocity of 1,466.785 metres per minute, good for 3rd prize against 669 pigeons.
And that was only the beginning.
27 Prizes from 52 Young Pigeons
Huub basketed 52 youngsters for Sourdun and no fewer than 27 of them made the prize list.
That gives a total prize percentage of 51.9%.
More than half the team scored after two nights in the basket. For young pigeons at this stage of the season, that is the kind of result that tells you much more than one isolated early arrival.
The complete Hermans result was 3rd, 13th, 24th, 25th, 29th, 36th, 42nd, 49th, 54th, 55th, 80th, 94th, 112th, 120th, 132nd, 134th, 143rd, 158th, 171st, 179th, 186th, 187th, 198th, 204th, 205th, 207th and 213th prize against 669 pigeons.
Look a little deeper and the strength becomes even clearer.
Huub already had five pigeons inside the first 29 prizes and ten inside the first 55. His first ten prize winners were clocked within only 13 minutes and 46 seconds.
That is what strong loft form looks like.
Not one pigeon carrying the result. A complete group doing the work.
Sourdun Confirms the Depth of the Young Team
Young bird racing can change quickly. Form, experience, recovery and confidence all matter, especially when the pigeons have spent two nights in the basket.
That is why this Sourdun performance deserves attention.
The first youngster was right at the front in 3rd place, but behind it came a steady stream of Hermans pigeons. That depth is important because it shows that the quality in Born is not concentrated in one individual.
The family is producing.
And that has been one of the clearest messages from Huub Hermans throughout the 2026 racing season.
Three Major Performances Define Huub Hermans in 2026
Sourdun is another strong chapter, but Huub has already produced several performances in 2026 that stand out even in a career filled with top results.
One of the biggest came from Argenton, where Huub won 1st Provincial against 2,759 pigeons over approximately 585 kilometres. Winning at provincial level on that distance demands much more than raw speed. It requires condition, intelligence and the ability to keep working deep into the race.
Then came Sens, where the Hermans loft recorded 2nd Provincial against 11,443 pigeons over 363 kilometres. To finish second in a field of that size is serious racing at championship level.
Earlier in the season, Reims had already delivered another major result with 3rd Provincial against 8,572 pigeons over approximately 235 kilometres.
First Provincial Argenton. Second Provincial Sens. Third Provincial Reims.
Different distances, different race profiles, the same loft at the front.
That is a powerful summary of the 2026 season.
Current Performance Matters Heading into the Auction Season
The international auction season is getting closer, and this is exactly the moment when serious fanciers start studying results, pedigrees and families.
Famous ancestors matter. Proven breeding lines matter. But current performance matters just as much.
You want to know whether a family is still producing racers that can compete today.
Huub Hermans is providing that answer week after week in 2026.
The provincial victory from Argenton shows class over 585 kilometres. The 2nd Provincial from Sens proves the loft can compete at the very front against more than 11,000 pigeons. The 3rd Provincial from Reims confirms the speed. And now Sourdun adds another important piece to the picture, with 27 prizes from 52 youngsters and a prize percentage of 51.9%.
For anyone studying the Huub Hermans pigeons ahead of the coming auction season, these are the numbers worth remembering.
The bloodlines are being tested right now.
The young generation is already answering.
The Hermans Family Keeps Moving Forward
That may be the strongest message from Sourdun.
Two old pigeons were faster on the day, but behind them came a young Hermans team packed with depth. Ten prize winners inside the first 55 and 27 prizes from 52 entries is not built on luck.
It is another result that fits perfectly into Huub Hermans’ 2026 season.
Speed from Reims. Class from Sens. Provincial victory from Argenton. And now another powerful team performance from Sourdun.
The season keeps delivering evidence that the racing pigeon family in Born is very much alive, competitive and ready for the future.
And with the auction season approaching, that makes the next chapter especially interesting.
Jan de Wijs
The Pigeon Boss
