Yearlings must rank two national marathon races, out of two possible, to achieve the norm of the Grand Prix Marathon yearlings category. This means that the young pigeons are engaged at the toughest stages of the season, both in terms of distances and competition. The same happened with the three yearlings we find on the national podium of this category in 2021, who participated and won in the national stages of the three most important provinces of the country.

The national top is opened by George-Marian Zidaru from Dolj, who won the first national trophy of his career with a more than considerable advance. It is followed by the Grigorean & Acununi team from Suceava and the Buliga Brothers, from Caraș-Severin. So, a national trophy for Oltenia, one for Moldova and one for the western province.

George-Marian Zidaru (DJ), one of the youngest national champions

The young pigeon fancier George-Marian Zidaru started competing in 2019, taking over the passion for pigeons from his father, and in just three years he managed to get access of the highest step of the national podium. He is the champion of the Marathon Grand Prix yearlings category with the hen RO-20-0343333, who obtained a coefficient of 3.95 penalty points after ranking 21st out of 5,986 pigeons, at the National Tokmak stage (1,023 km), and on 1st place out of 2,253 pigeons, at the National Izium stage (1,160 km). Thus, George-Marian Zidaru, at only 22 years old, became one of the youngest national champions in Romania. “The hen is reproduced from two pigeons from the flight group. In 2020, her mother occupied te 4th place in the county in the category of Marathon Ace old birds. For the 2021 season we had a batch of about 70 pigeons which, after three stages of natural method, were transferred to widowhood. I intended to play the Izium stage on natural method, but I changed my mind. The food I used was from Versele Laga. The pigeons received Superstar, Gerry a day or two after arrival and Energy for training, and in order to recover, on each arrival they received Belgasol in the water. Usually I only did one training per week between the marathon stages, of 80 km. I only trained them twice before Izium “, he detailed. Also, for those who want to know more details about the young pigeon fancier from Dolj, we offer you a video interview made in his loft, which you can find at https://racingpigeons.ro/2021/09/18/marian- zidaru-tanara-speranta-a-columbofiliei-doljene /.

The team Grigorean & Acununi from Suceava, on the National 2nd place

Instead, the second place is occupied by two pigeon fanciers with much more experience: the Grogorean & Acununi team from Suceava. The two, Gavril Grigorean and Gheorghe Acununi, have been in contact with the pigeon sport for many years and, after a friendship of over 20 years, in 2017, they decided that it was time to unite their forces. The results also appeared very quickly: the 2nd place National Marathon Old birds 2018 and the 2nd place National Marathon Grand Prix Yearlings 2019. In 2021 they returned to the national podium also in the category Marathon Grand Prix Yearlings, occupying the same second place, this time with the cock RO-20- 0916751. Their young fighter was engaged for Madona Național and Birzai Național stages, competitions in which he took 137th place out of 13,034 pigeons (1,057 km) and 27th place out of 9,426 pigeons (955 km). Following these rankings, he was penalized with 13.37 points, enough to obtain the position of national vice-champion. “We have been as a team since 2017, the loft being located in Suceava, with my friend and colleague Gavril Grigorean. We compete only in the marathon, with an annual batch of at least 60 pigeons, played in widowhood. They are paired in February, hatch for five days, after which they are separated again. They are paired again on April 15, hatch another five days, after which they are separated and played as widows until the end of the season. During the season we used Beyers food, and during training, the pigeons go to trainings every second day, for about 100 km. From the point of view of origins, the cock is reproduced from an original Frank Zwiers cock, and the mother is from Măgirescu + Ojog + Dorneanu, with Jellema and Ko van Dommelen origins. He is the brother of the 5th place National Marathon Grand Prix Old birds and with a hen who arrived at night from the Birzai National stage “, said Gheorghe Acununi.

The Buliga brothers (CS), fanciers with the longest distances, complete the national podium

Brothers Vasile and Ion Buliga have been competing almost without interruptions since 1988, and because they live in Moldova Nouă, they have the longest distances in the entire western province in the marathon stages. However, they are only passionate about this category, the only one in which the chances of performing are realistic. In the 2021 season they have achieved one of the best results since competing. The hen RO-20-0137340, after ranking the stages of Prague National and Berlin National, ranks 3rd National Marathon Grand Prix yearlings, with 14.64 penalty points. At Prague National, the hen had 868 km to fly and ranked 1st out of 623 pigeons (provincial ranking), and at Berlin National she had a distance of 1,134 km, a stage in which she obtained 8th place out of 614 pigeons (county ranking ). “Since 1988, when I was a child, I have only had a break of three or four years. Otherwise, we competed continuously and tried the Middle distance and Allround categories, but the area where we live and the big difference of km from our colleagues determined us to choose only the marathon. We keep a batch of 70 pigeons a year, and the method of flight is natural. Last year widows participated for the first marathon, but then we left them together. I can say that this hen was lucky. Before Nuremberg I took them to a training session, from where they arrived after several days attacked by the hawk. We all know what a catastrophe Nurnberg was, and I think that if we engaged her there, she might not come. In Prague she was engaged on eggs, and for Berlin, because her cock was lost in Prague, she managed to lay only the first egg at home. She comes from the pigeons Vanroy, on her father’s line, and Jellema, on her mother’s line. The mother was bought from Gelu Vochin and has all the consecrated pigeons of the well-known pigeon fancier from the Netherlands behind her. Otherwise, the food I used was from Vanrobaeys, and between stages, the pigeons were taken to two or three training sessions of 35-40 km, with launches in the morning, in the evening and even at noon “, said Vasile Buliga .