The most popular and beloved Marathon race this season was, by far, the Berlin National race, organized on August 6 by the Bihor Columbophile Association. The race attracted huge interest from Romanian fanciers, so that, this year, 982 fanciers from 24 counties of the country lined up a number of 5,839 pigeons at the start. More precisely, fanciers from Alba, Arad, Bihor, Bistrița Năsăud, Botoșani, Brăila, Brașov, Caraș Severin, Cluj, Covasna, Dolj, Gorj, Harghita, Hunedoara, Iași, Maramureș, Mehedinți, Mureș, Sălaj, Satu Mare, Suceava, Timiș, Tulcea and Vâlcea participated in this competition, which in recent years has turned into a veritable final of the end of the championship with old birds.

Lucian Suceveanu

The race itself was a real success with the pigeons being released at 7:30am and the first managed to reach home after about 12 hours of flight, with a considerable lead over the second pigeon to arrive in the race. The champion of the 12th edition of the Berlin National is the hen 1030088-2020, who managed to cover the 948 aerial kilometers to the loft with an average speed of 1,354.10 m/minute, showing speed, a developed sense of orientation, as well as and the power to break away from the major flock from the start. The bird, which belongs to the pigeon fancier Lucian Suceveanu, from Satu Mare, was registered by the clock on the first day of the competition, at 19:10:44. In addition to this magnificent result, the pigeon also did very well in the other two extreme marathon stages of this season, where she obtained leading positions. It is about the Stendal National stage, where he took 4th place on the Satu-Mare center, and 6th place on the Oradea center at the Schwerin National stage. With these results, the hen is a formidable contender for the title of the best pigeon of the Western Province in the Marathon Extreme Ace category. Her results are no accident, last season her brother was runner-up at the same Berlin National stage, taking 2nd National place as Yearling. During the season, the champion competed as a widow, and for the Berlin race she was prepared naturally, leaving on eggs for several days. As origins, they are drawn from established pigeons for the Marathon stages from renowned fanciers such as Jelle Jelema, Henri Hoeks, Chris van der Velden and Dan Vasile.

Călin Habaci

Berlin National vice-champion becomes the hen 2001850-2020, whose owner is Călin Habaci, from Vladimirescu, Arad county, by her very good arrival on the first day at 20:24:25. The hen, who flew 995 aerial kilometers to the loft, managed to propagate in the air an average speed of 1,285.38 m/minute. As the pedigree shows, she comes from a good pigeon family with two of her good sisters also achieving top rankings this season at various stages. Their mother, “628”, is also a great champion, being a daughter of “Pensa”, another top national hen.

The experienced fancier Florian Cabău, from Lovrin, Timiș county, is on the third position of the podium in the general rankings, who manages to achieve resounding results in this race. He prepared a group of 50 pigeons for this special race, in the end 38 of them managed to rank it. The 3rd place on the stage is taken by the powerful cock 0383288-2020 who flew the 981 aerial kilometers with an average speed of 1,283.84 m/minute, arriving on the first day of the competition at 20:14:15. This season, the pigeon ranked all three stages of the Dresden Marathon, in the Dresden 2nd stage ranking even in the 1st place in the county. Originally, he is bred from a cock with Jan Aarden blood, and the mother is a combination of the Wegen + Desmet Matthys lines.

Florin Cabău

Being a very consistent bird, the cock was also nominated for the team, a team that Florian obtained with the first three pigeons that arrived, birds that manage to rank 3rd, 5th and 14th in the general ranking of the stage, also awarding him his place 1 in the general ranking in the fanciers category. The second bird from the team is the hen 0341135-2017, which arrived at the loft at 20:45:45, on the first day of the competition, with an average speed of 1,233.02 m/minute. This season, the hen also placed the Stendal and Schwerin stages. Her father is Desmet Matthys and her mother is Jan Aarden. The number three pigeon from the team, the cock series 0383154-2020, the one that managed to rank 14th in the stage, arrived in the loft towards the end of the evening, at 21:16:58. He propagated through the air an average speed of 1,186.48 m/minute.

Tănăsie & Cărăbaș

The team Tănăsie & Cărăbaş, from Lipova, Arad county, takes the 2nd place of the fanciers category, of the stage. They prepared a batch of 10 pigeons, managing to rank 6 of them. The first three birds to arrive in the loft have an extraordinary grouping, managing to place 8th, 9th and 11th on the launch. The first to arrive at the kennel is hen 0077275-2020, who had to fly home 1,016 air kilometers, which she covered with an average speed of 1,221.04 m/minute. His sire is the cock NL-1880-2017 Janssen- Koopman and her dam is 54139-2018 Desmet-Matthys- Janssen- De Klak- Drapa. The second pigeon from the team is the cock 0374234-2019, which arrives home at 21:22:15, the same minute as the first hen. His father is 0562776-2011 from Nicu Siclovan, from pigeons with Nouwen-Paesen origins, and his mother is original Marcel Cadariu and has Huyskens-Van Riel + Stichelbaut blood. The third bird arrives ten minutes after the two, at 21:32:12. Like blood, her father is from Calin Ususan, from Nouwen-Paesen pigeons, and her mother is “Berlineza” – 3rd place national Berlin Palmares 3 years 2011-2013. Their pigeons have flown by the widow method all competition season.

Dinu Curea, from the town of Gătaia, Timiș county, ranks 3rd in the general ranking of the fanciers category. He entered a batch of 20 pigeons at the Berlin National stage and placed 17, a very high percentage of placed birds. The first pigeon to arrive in the loftranked 25th on release is the yearling hen series 0524085-2021. She arrived home the next morning at 06:36:44, covering the 1,059 air kilometers at an average speed of 1,044.81 m/minute. The next two from the team are also hens and ranked 34th and 47th on the launch. The second is also a yearling, with the series 0524025-2021, and the third has the series 0382518-2018.

Bihor county rankings

Familia Tunduc

In the ranking of the organizing county of Bihor, in pigeons competition, the Tunduc Family, from Oradea, prevails through a strong yearling hen, 2000071-2021, which managed to outclass all the county competition, arriving at the loft after a 13-hour flight race . The young bird, which was clocked at 8:37:54 p.m., covered the distance of 949 air kilometers at an average speed of 1,205.39 m/minute. Her father is a cock brought from Sorin Zamfir, and her mother has Ioan Feștilă origins. The 2000071-2021 county champion is a half sister to “Lagertha”, a hen that arrived in the 2021 season on the first day of the Stendal Marathon stage, a race from which, on the first day of the competition, only two pigeons managed to reach the loft, both for Tunduc Family. As a game system, the Tunduc team uses a unique method in which only females compete, since 2017, and from then until now they have occupied 33 1st places in stages in different distance categories. Their method of play was taken from several fanciers who play different distance categories, and they did nothing but refine it and adapt it to the needs of their own loft. This game system puts a lot of pressure on the psyche of the birds, many of them succumbing, but those that endure turn out memorable performances.

Pop Cotună + Nicoară

Also from Oradea, the team Pop Cotună + Nicoară climbs to the 2nd place in the county by the spectacular arrival of their cock with the series 0804125-2020, on the first day of the competition, at 22:38:26. In this flight, the pigeon had to travel 952 aerial kilometers, a distance in which it developed an average speed of 1,049.00 m/minute. The sire of this cock was purchased from Vlad Fildan, he has 100% Jelle Jelema blood, and he proved to be a good breeder. The mother was purchased from an auction site, columbofil.net, she is an original Arjan Beens hen. 0804125-2020 this season also ranked three stages of the Dresden Marathon in the first 10% of the competition. It should be mentioned that a good sister with him also managed, in Sebastian Zlibut’s loft, top rankings at the Dresden 1 and Dresden 2 marathons, also this season, and at the Berlin National race she took the 5th county place. The pigeons of the team Pop Cotună + Nicoara were prepared for the Berlin National stage by the natural method, leaving for basketing as 2-week-old chicks.

Serah-Team Moner

On the third county placeis Team Moner, which owns the hen series 2000581-2020 which achieved this feat by arriving the next day in the morning, at 06:03:32, flying the 974 aerial kilometers to fancier with an average speed of 993.21 m/minute. Her father was played by Nicu Siclovan and achieved 10 rankings in the Marathon stages, of which 4 stages were Berlin National, and her mother was purchased from Florin Tîrtea, being a combination of Florizone, Euro Star, van Open. The playing method of Team Moner, a brother and sister team, is natural. Pigeon 2000581-2020 was basketed with an egg in the nest.

Silvia Lucia Pataki

Attila Pataki, from Salonta, Bihor county, prepared and engaged a batch of 7 pigeons at the Berlin National race, and 3 of them also placed in the Bihor rankings. Following the good rankings of the first three arriving pigeons, their team becomes the county champion of the fancier category. All the birds on the team are hens, and in the order in which they arrived home they have the series 0093040-2020, 0093056-2020 and the young one with the series 0961869-2021, in the general ranking occupying the 84th, 150th, 196th places. The first to arrive, the series 0093040- 2020, was recorded in the loft at 06:10:00, developing an average speed of 966.31 m/minute during the 954 air kilometers. Like her origins, her father is an original cock Daniel Cobzaru, and her mother is brought from Codruț Năstase. The method of preparing the flight batch is the natural one, starting on the egg position for a week and a half. The other two birds are bred in the Pataki loft, and as a position they had eggs in the nest when basketing. Due to the fact that Attila is away from the pigeons most of the time, the work in the loft and almost all the responsibilities fall on the shoulders of Silvia Lucia Pataki, who spends most of her free time taking care of and training the flight group.

Țărău Nicolae Luca

The team Țărău Nicolae Luca from Girișu Negru, made up of father Nicolae and son Luca, a young team who have been practicing this sport since the 2019 season, climbed to the second place in the county in the fanciers category. For the Berlin stage they prepared the birds using the natural method, a method that has been practicing all season, entering a batch of 16 pigeons into the competition, of which 4 have placed. The three birds that arrived at the team are all hens, being the first to arrive in the loft. The first to arrive home after a race of 974 aerial kilometers is the pigeon series 0093115-2020. She is clocked the next morning at 07:13:33. This season, the hen showed speed, intelligence and constancy, managing to place ten stages and finishing the norm in the speed and middle distance categories. The second hen has the serial number 0828962-2019 and arrived home the next day at 07:21:02. The third bird, which in the 2021 season won 3rd place in the Youth Fund category on Clubul Salonta, has the series 0093121-2020 and reaches the finish line at 08:39:52.

Marius Sandro

The third place on the podium of Bihor county in the category of fanciers is occupied by Marius Sandro, from the town of Nojorid. His batch of pigeons, selected for the Berlin National stage, was trained naturally, all leaving on eggs for 3-4 days. Of the 13 pigeons engaged, 6 also brought a ranking in the county ranking. The first 3 arrivals are from the team and all are young birds of one year. The first arrival is the cock with the series 2025127-2021, who arrived at the loft the next morning at 06:58:28. He covered the 951 air kilometers with an average speed of 918.79 m/minute. After the end of this season, this bird will occupy a leading place in the Gold category as well. The second yearling arrived home is the cock with the series 1340014-2021, which was registered at 07:21:59. The third is a young hen 2025105-2021, who together with 1340014-2021 will be present on the county podium at the end of the year in the Marathon Yearlings and Marathon Ace Yearlings categories. Like their origins, the three legendary yearlings have the blood of Gaby Vandenabeele, Janssen, Machiel Buijk and Octavian Coste in their veins.

Arad Rankings

In Arad, Călin Habaci, from Vladimirescu, takes the 1st county place in the pigeon category in this stage with the same hen 2001850-2020 series that takes 2nd place in the general ranking of this stage, being presented above as the vice-champion of this Berlin National edition .

Preisinger + Baltă

On the second step of the county ranking of the pigeon category we find the team Preisinger + Baltă, from the town of Pecica. Their young and fast hen 0082749-2021, who arrives at the kennel on the first day of the competition at 20:41:56, thus becoming the county vice-champion of the 12th Berlin National edition. She had to fly home 978 air kilometers, propagating through the air an average speed of 1,235.72 m/minute. As blood, her parents were brought from her good friend Ciprian Pinczes, from the town of Semlac, she being the granddaughter of the hen series 0369498-2019 who at the stage of the Extreme Marathon Schwerin occupied the 1st place in the entire race. For the Berlin National stage, she was prepared using the natural method, leaving for basketing in the egg position for 8-9 days.

Marius Sălăsan

The third county place goes to the hen 0053985-2018 belonging to Marius Sălăsan, from Lipova. After a flight of 1,014 aerial kilometers, the pigeon arrived home on the first day, being registered by the clock at 21:13:08. Throughout the stage it developed an average speed of 1,232.18 m/minute. Towards the end of the season, she was paired with an old cock, who still had a nesting position, and with another hen, so the two pigeons flew to jealousy, both achieving good rankings. 0053985-2018 had great attraction to the cock she was paired with, and because she had the box above his box where she was hatching with the other hen, her motivation was even stronger. The origins are derived from pigeons purchased by Mircea Crișan, from Ineu, on the voiajor.net auction site. Following an exchange of chickens between the two friends, she ended up in the possession of Mariu Sălasan, who successfully competed her.

Team Tănăsie & Cărăbaș from Lipova, who took the 2nd place in the entire launch in the fanciers category, also take the 1st place in Arad county, with the same team of pigeons presented above. The stars of the breeding in this flight were the hen 0077275-2020, the cock 0374234-2019 and the pigeon 2008716-2020.

Codruț Năstasă

Codruț Năstase, from the town of Chișinău-Criș, takes the 2nd county place in the fanciers category. His team consists of three hens, all from 2020. The first finisher has the serial number 0071649-2020 and arrived home on the first day of the competition at 20:46:53, covering the 970 air kilometers at an average speed of 1.218, 13 m/minute. The second bird, with the series 0071630-2020, finished the race also on the first day of the competition, at 21:37:58, while the third hen, with the series 0093078-2020, ranks the second day in the morning , arriving at the kennel at 07:10:35. The batch prepared for this important flight by Codruț consisted of 12 pigeons, 7 of them managed to stand out, ranking this edition Berlin National.

Ioan Sărac, from the town of Santana, sends 10 pigeons to this magnificent stage and, thanks to the good rankings of the first three arrivals, takes the 3rd county place in the fanciers category. Coincidence or not, Ioan’s team also consists of three hens, the first to arrive being a yearling one. It is about the yearling with the series 0081062-2021, which arrives home after the flight of 984 air kilometers at 20:49:02, propagating in the air an average speed of 1,232.15 m/minute, and finishing the race in the 7th position in the entire competition.

Ioan Sărac

This season, this hen has placed 10 stages, including 3 Long Distance stages and an Extreme Marathon, thus proving her class as a good runner. Her father is a brother to the national 1st place Perpignan – Germany, belonging to Joachim Neurath (a gift from Hoff Johann), and her mother comes from the most established pigeons of Daniel Cobzaru. The second arrival is a 3-year-old female with the series 0373400-2019, who arrived home from the Berlin National the next morning at 06:18:36, taking 52nd place on the release. This season it has 7 ranked stages, and its origins are a product reproduced and worked by Ioan in his own loft, on a 2012 pigeon, from Schellens and Gaby Vandenabeele pigeons. With this line of pigeons, Ioan Sărac has been competing for many years at distances between 100 and 1,000 kilometers. The proof is the mother of pigeon 0373400-2019, which placed, in 2018, 13 stages: 3 Long Distance, 3 Marathon stages and the rest being Speed and Half Distance stages. Her sire, in 2012,l at 3-year-old cock, finished 1st over a 200 kilometer stage and 16th over 850 aerial kilometers. The third one that arrived at the team, the hen with the series 0373310-2019, is also a product made in Ioan’s loft. As a yearling, the hen finished the norm in the Long Distance Ace, Yearlings category, and this season she finished 10 stages, including 3 Long Distance stages and an Extreme Marathon.