Beautiful Article in Duifke lacht
Team Eijerkamp (Pulderbos)
1st national Argenton | 15,386 old pigeons
Fastest of 37,697 pigeons
The first national flight from Argenton this year was basketed in cool temperatures. This would change quickly in the weeks that followed, with a series of heatwaves. On Saturday the forecasts weren't very good. An approaching rain zone led to a postponement to Sunday, which was certainly for the best given that conditions were a lot better then. In Argenton the pigeons were released at 07:00 in lightly overcast weather with a weak south-southwesterly wind.
The sidebar text on the right edge is cut off in the photo, so I couldn't include that part.
"I think we're still only at the beginning of something great."
Along the way the wind kept picking up and turned toward the southwest. It became a smooth flight with the good marked ones up front in plenty of places. The five national top prizes with the old pigeons were won solely by top markings. The winner and fastest pigeon was from Team Eijerkamp (Pulderbos). Their ace pigeon "Belgian Dream" covered the 563-kilometer distance at an average speed of 1,556.49 m/min. Quite a debut in Belgium! They had a comfortable lead over Frank Monette from Diest (1,544.90 m/min). In third place we find Nicole De Weerd-Berckmoes from Lille (1,537.45 m/min). Among the yearling pigeons, Johny & Magda Jonckers from Drieslinter in Flemish Brabant won the national title (1,553.26 m/min). Silver went to Luc Van Mechelen from Oud-Turnhout (1,552.97 m/min), who fell short by just 29 centimeters. In third place we find Michel Lossignol (Budingen) with 1,550.27 m/min.
Oliver Sabol
The man behind this great start by Team Eijerkamp in Belgium is Oliver Sabol. Oliver is a Croat, born in 1977, married and father of two children aged 18 and 12. He's a man with a mission. "I already dreamed about pigeon racing at a very young age. When I was 15 there was no internet yet. I had so little information at that time. Older enthusiasts from Croatia went to fairs in Kassel and Houten. They brought back pigeon magazines from there and I read about a certain Gaby Vandenabeele. He was the winner of races like Argenton and Bourges. To me that was a hero at the time," Oliver says. He has had pigeons for almost his whole life. "I don't remember exactly anymore when I started, but I do remember how. At a young age I already had various kinds of birds. I don't know where my interest came from, because no one in my family had anything to do with nature. I've always been a nature person. For instance, I had hawks, but also various kinds of pigeons. Not just racing pigeons, but ornamental pigeons too. Eventually I kept coming back to the racing pigeon and became a pigeon fancier as well." In 1999 Oliver took part in his first pigeon race. At that point he'd already had racing pigeons for at least ten years. "I was crazy about white pigeons and that's still the case. Right now I take part in one-loft races, and only with white pigeons. It's a process I started in 2021. In 2025 the results were very good. I have a certain bloodline of entirely white pigeons and they mainly come from Falco Ebben. I got them as a gift from him, for which I'm very grateful. Right now I try to keep buying back my best pigeons after the one-loft races, and that way I'm gradually getting stronger. The results are improving and I hope to become the best in one-loft races worldwide with white pigeons. That would be unique, so it's a challenge," Oliver says. It sums him up perfectly. Once he's set his mind on something, you can't talk him out of it. Losing isn't in his vocabulary. Oliver is a true winner. From a young age he already excelled in Croatia. Among other things, he won the national ace-pigeon speed title there. He also managed to place in the middle-distance for the Dortmund Olympiad in 2009. Later he also placed in the middle-long distance. "I was always good in Croatia, but never
"For me pigeon racing isn't a hobby or a real job. It's a passion."
the best. At that time I was working ten hours a day, which meant I couldn't give the pigeons the attention they needed. My whole life I've worked at least six days a week. The last ten years even seven out of seven twenty-four hours out of twenty-four, so to speak." It never stops in Oliver's head. Let's go back ten years in time. Oliver earns his living in Croatia as a roofer, but financially it's not easy. "The president of the pigeon federation in Croatia, Branko Gorupec, is a good friend of mine. He was also very good friends with Evert-Jan Eijerkamp. Evert-Jan told Branko he was looking for someone who was good with pigeons. Branko asked me if I wanted to move to the Netherlands. I was naturally interested. It's as if you play for a local football club and FC Barcelona comes to sign you. There was one problem though. My youngest son had just been born. I couldn't leave my wife alone at that moment with two small children all four grandparents had already passed away, so she would have been left on her own. A year later Evert-Jan called me again. 'Your son is a bit older now,' he said. I decided to take the plane to the Netherlands. We talked for an hour then and he told me right away that I could start immediately. I didn't have to work seven days a week, but I did it anyway. I was separated from my family and I didn't want to throw away any chance. The maximum result had to be achieved. To me that's just logical. Still is, today. If I can't be with my family, I'm only here for results. Who's going to take care of the pigeons if I'm away one day a week? Luckily I have a great neighbor here in Pulderbos who can help me. It's Leo, who also helped André. If I need anything, he'll come right away and help me. But I have to admit that so far I've barely called on Leo. I'm a control freak. Everything has to be perfect. I only stop with the pigeons when I'm on vacation
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(caption: Evert-Jan with "Belgian Dream")
...go to my homeland. I go four weeks after the season, and I'm also with my family for the holidays. Of course it isn't easy for me and my family. They know why I'm here. Partly it's financial too. When I came to Team Eijerkamp in 2017, I was earning 500 euros a month in Croatia at the time. That was little, and now ten years later you couldn't even survive on that anymore. In the Netherlands I could obviously earn a lot more, so I decided to try it for three years. Then I would go back home. I told Hans Eijerkamp the following when I arrived. If within three years I don't make sure you become the best loft in the Netherlands, I'll shake your hand and go back to Croatia. I just need three years. He laughed and said to me: Oliver, I've already had several loft caretakers and already invested a lot in pigeons. I've never become number one. I answered him: That's because you never called me before. Everyone laughed of course. This man comes from Croatia and is completely crazy, I thought they were thinking. I only needed two years in the end."
Best loft in the Netherlands
When Oliver started in the Netherlands, he was tasked with taking care of the racing cocks. He became national champion with them in 2019 and 2020. "I always gave my best young hen pigeons to Kees van de Beek, my partner at Team Eijerkamp. He was the specialist with the hens. At one point the loft got too full and Kees didn't want any more. He asked me what we were going to do with those hens. It was about fifteen to sixteen hens, which was still a considerable group. I'll fly them myself, I said to him. Kees was startled and replied that I only had experience with cocks. Yes, but I can also play with hens, was my answer. We're talking about 2021. I won the second, third, fourth and fifth national ace pigeon with these hens. From then on I also play with hens, but of course still with cocks as well. If you ask me, if I have to choose, I'd still choose cocks. Many fanciers don't know how to play with cocks over these distances. They prefer to play with hens. For me it's easier, even easier than with hens. You can't feed them too much. With hens you have to be careful. You mustn't feed them too fast or too much, otherwise they'll pair up among themselves. Once they start laying eggs in the season, it's over. I do have to admit that the four biggest wins in my career were always achieved with hens, despite the cocks' performances always being very good too," Oliver says. The successes followed quickly with the young pigeons too. "In 2018 the Eijerkamp family asked me if I'd like to play with young pigeons. I didn't know. I'd never played with young pigeons in Croatia before. Luckily there was Falco Ebben. He's a photographer and came by our lofts regularly. They told me then that Falco was second national champion with the young pigeons in 2017. They didn't have to tell me twice. I learned a lot from him. I bombarded him with hundreds of questions. I think he got a bit tired of me (laughs). Sometimes the same question ten times, so to speak, but from a different angle. The day you stop learning is the last day of your life. Then it's over. I like to ask someone's opinion and I always listen carefully. But learning from your mistakes is even better. It costs something, but it's still always the best way. In 2018 we had nine official races with the big transporter. I won all nine. We had a national ace pigeon and won all three NPO flights. We even had the top ten prizes twice on those three NPO flights. That came about too because I don't think like most people. What I learned from Falco, and also from other people, I put into one box and I take out of it what I want myself." Team Eijerkamp won the first national ace pigeon with the young pigeons together with Oliver with "Luka Modric." The champion was named after the best Croatian footballer, because Oliver is also a football fan. In 2019 they were the best loft in the Netherlands. "Then they said in the Netherlands that maybe I got a bit lucky
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(caption: Oliver shows where the winner sat in the loft)
...had it, since the loft is in the beginning of its build-up. My neighbors think I've won enough, but I still want more"), so I won it again in 2020. We were also on the podium in 2021. Our worst place in the "Best Fancier" competition over all those years in the Netherlands was tenth place. In 2023 we won "Best Fancier" with the young pigeons. That was a big goal for me. I told my boss earlier in the season that this was my goal. When I say something like that, it drives me completely crazy. I won't stop until I've achieved it," Oliver says. He became an absolute sensation in the Netherlands. Respect for his performances grew, but Oliver's hunger wasn't satisfied yet.
Pulderbos
Oliver was pleased with the performances in the Netherlands. Yet he looked with wide eyes at the national races in Belgium. Races that don't exist in the Netherlands. "I was never able to compete with Verkerk or Willem de Bruijn there, because I never flew directly against them. In Belgium you take on the entire country. That appealed to me enormously. I said this to Evert-Jan too, who also saw the appeal." After that, the ball quickly started rolling. Through circumstances they ended up with André Roodhooft. The house and the pigeons of André were taken over. "This last part was also interesting for me, because that way I could also play with old pigeons right away in my first year. I also immediately had big ambitions and expressed them to Evert-Jan and André," Oliver says. André still comes by Pulderbos now and then. "Sometimes he's here three times a week, but it can also happen that he doesn't come for a week. It depends on his schedule. The speed races didn't interest him much right away, but they really don't interest me either. For me it's training. I got a very high prize percentage in April. André was even a bit worried about it. He even warned me. 'Oliver, I don't know what you're doing, but you're starting way too well.' I can [handle] this the whole season, I told him. He didn't believe me, but I said to him: André, I know you don't believe me, but I came here to win a national flight and I will do this. In 2026 at the latest." He looked at me and said nothing. He was clearly thinking his own thoughts (laughs). For me the hardest part was adjusting to a different country again. Everything here was strange to me. So I had to look for people who could support me at the start. I found them too. Rik Hermans helps me with a great many things. Even though we're competitors, nothing is too much trouble for him to help me. He's a really good guy. Then there's also Eddy Janssens and Danny Van Dyck that I got to know. Great people! We've become good friends in a short time. They made my adjustment to the new location a lot easier. I want to thank them for that too. I don't know many things that the average pigeon fancier does know. Where my loft is oriented, or exactly what...
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...are in certain medication. But when I see that a pigeon is sick, I do know what to give it. This is because of many mistakes in the past. I never had a mentor who taught me anything. I've had to learn everything in the pigeon sport myself. Luckily my boss was never angry. It happened in the Netherlands that after coming home with three or four pigeons I already said to Evert-Jan: I've failed. He then replied that I had the earliest one, but that he didn't need to hear about that. Yes, I have the earliest pigeon, but I have three pigeons and the neighbors have ten. For me there are no excuses. I'm very critical of myself and the pigeons. All the rest is nonsense. How can you be happy with such a result? It wasn't good. Even with Bourges I had a problem with the performance. I spoke about it with Rik (Hermans). How can I celebrate, Rik? I see several pigeons for me zonally. Yes, he said, but those are yearlings. You have the first zonal old pigeon. I had the feeling that I was cheating. Those guys were ahead of me. It's a different category, he told me. That's completely normal in Belgium. In Croatia and the Netherlands there's only one category. OK then I said. If everyone's happy that I'm the big winner, then I'm the big winner."
The rollers that prevent the hens from mating among themselves on the floor. / The rest boxes of the flying hens.
...were paired on January 15th and the hens begin in March. Last year in the Netherlands he played total widowhood. "It was good, but not good enough. Classic widowhood is better. The partner has to be home when the pigeon comes home. Sometimes it's shown beforehand, sometimes not. I constantly change things like that. I always try to develop a system that no one else has. I also take risks sometimes. I'm not the standard pigeon fancier. To give an example: If it's very hot in the afternoon, most fanciers don't let their pigeons out. Mine always go out then. At 15:30 they have to go outside. I use a skydancer (an inflatable decoy that keeps the pigeons flying). They don't have to fly for an hour of course, but still certainly half an hour if the temperature is close to 30 degrees. I use the skydancer when the weather is cool too. It's about discipline. In the beginning they have to get a bit used to it, but by now I know how I need to apply it. I let them outside and they immediately go fly high. After five minutes I turn on the skydancer. When I bring them in, they can't drink for the first quarter of an hour. Then I give them water and they can rest a bit, and then I let them outside again. I do it two to three times a day like this in the beginning if needed. After a few days they're used to it and I can let them outside normally. That skydancer has several advantages. When a pigeon flies higher, it gets more fresh air. Just before the first national flight from Bourges I start letting them out twice a day. Training at home and by car
"Alles hangt van de wedstrijdomstandigheden af" (Everything depends on race conditions)
...makes them sharper. In every sport, think of football, athletics, basketball, the top athletes train twice a day. Why do they train so much? If you want to be good at something, you have to train, it seems. That was the warm period for the time of year. The first heat. "In the morning I let them out at 06:30 and in the afternoon at 15:30. On the day of basketing they always go outside. Sometimes even twice, indeed, at 15:30 as well." When I ask why he does this, he answers me with a counter-question. "Why not? Why isn't it good? Tell me." Aren't you afraid they'll join up with other pigeons, I ask him. "My pigeons need to have discipline. I'm very strict with them and don't make it easy for them. That's why that skydancer is there too. They know exactly what's expected of them. Besides, I myself know perfectly what shape they're in. The week of Bourges I was so glad because I knew they weren't going to cover a high number of meters. I love heavy races. Then I can excel more. It was almost 30 degrees that week. I like that too, because a lot of people don't know how they should prepare their pigeons for this kind of race. I won first zonal and provincial and made a nice result. I love headwind. With tailwind anyone can win. Mind you, every win is a win. I think that with my system I can make a difference with headwind. With wind at the back I can't make that difference. I made a lot of mistakes in the past. I remember every mistake I made. I learned from them. I don't write it down, it's here (points to his head)." The cocks aren't darkened. In the past it was tried a few times, but Oliver has no good experiences with it with cocks. "If it's cold at the start of the season it's very hard to get them into good condition, especially if they're kept dark."
"Alles hangt van de wedstrijdomstandigheden af" (Everything depends on race conditions)
When they come home from a national flight he feeds fairly heavily. A breeding mixture, a sport mixture, paddy rice and a fat-rich mixture are mixed together. They can choose what they want, because no pigeon eats the same thing. "Even when they come from Quiévrain and Noyon, I feed this. I used to fly with Aidi (one year) in the past, but I found this too complicated. It was a whole schedule. You basically had to have gone to university for it. I don't like complicated things. I decided to feed Natural, but I also still use Vanrobaeys. For flying I use two bags of Natural, two bags of Vanrobaeys and one bag of paddy rice. In the past I also flew very well with Galaxy Light from Beyers, and feed from Gaby Vandenabeele and feed from Embregts-Theunis. I also played very well with that last feed. Sport and NPO mix. That last one I still sometimes use here too. I like to put together my own feed and determine myself
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(captions: The nest boxes of the cocks. / Interior view of the widowers' loft.)
...what I think the pigeons will need for the next race. It depends entirely on the race conditions...
...come to the loft and look at the pigeons. I check the droppings and look outward. OK boys, today a bit of this and that. That's why it's very hard to copy. The more I apply this, the more I think I'm doing the right thing. I keep the pigeons never hungry. They always have more than they need. Cocks can go a whole day eating sometimes, especially during busy race periods. Hens not. They get the mixed feed the day of arrival home. The next day they get a purification mixture from Van Tilburg. Ideal for the intestines. They get this for one day. After that I start with Natural Green Power Balance. When they predict headwind at longer distances I mix in Natural Green Power Max. That's a fat-rich mixture. Those are the two mixtures I feed from Natural. From Vanrobaeys, Bakker Exclusive (number 4807) is used. I like old-fashioned feed with beans. Many people don't feed that anymore, but they don't realize the importance of beans. It's fed in the final days before basketing, but also the day of arrival home. Protein is important and they find that in beans. Bakker mixture, energy-rich feed, breeding feed... I mix it all together and they can eat what they want. All day until evening. The next day the young ones eat the leftovers. It's simple for me. When they come home, they eat everything. So I think it's good to feed beans. They can also eat it in the final days, though I prefer to give a more fat-rich feed then. At the start of the week thus more protein and at the end of the week energy-rich. The hens need to train an average of 45 minutes
...an hour of training every session. If the following weekend they have to fly a speed race, they train 1 hour and 20 minutes twice a day. That week they thus need to train a bit longer. It's all about balance. If it's colder, they need more feed. You have to see and feel what's necessary. People often tell me: I have problems with my loft pigeons. Maybe I should feed them less? No I say then. Maybe they just need to train more. Yes, but they don't want to train. Put them in the car and let them fly. I don't drive myself, thanks to the skydancer. The day after the race they don't fly out. Normally they fly twice on Monday, twice on Tuesday, twice on Wednesday (or Quiévrain). If they predict light weather they also fly twice on Thursday. It's good for their condition. They'll also eat better in the evening and moreover they'll lose some energy then. For some flights you have to temper them a bit if you understand what I mean. You mustn't push the gas, but the brake. If they predict 1800 m/min, you also shouldn't extra-motivate them. That would be stupid. Many people don't understand that. They say then: All season I haven't extra motivated them and now I thought: I'm going to show the pigeons to the cocks at basketing for the first time. Mama mia, those cocks go crazy. That's wrong at high speeds. They don't think with their head, but with something else (laughs). Then I'd rather do it like on Argenton, which were also light conditions. They flew Quiévrain on Wednesday. They saw calmly basketed. The hens I always take in the dark for races, but also for training tosses."
"Bad pigeons" stay put
Most fanciers remove a number of pigeons from their loft after a few weeks. Oliver has a striking view on this. "I never remove underperforming pigeons during the season. On my loft, every pigeon that comes home goes further to the next race. However badly they perform, they stay on the loft. Because I know that very poorly performing pigeons can still become winners. That's happened before on my own loft. If you have a poorly performing pigeon, just give it more chances. Many fanciers don't like that. Pigeons that had trouble following, I let fly speed races (Quiévrain and Noyon) for a period. Then for seven to eight weeks I only talk about training flights. When I then bring them back to the longer distances, they're sometimes faster than my good pigeons. Why? Because they're fresh. They already had these short trainings. If you then put them in Bourges or Argenton, they don't know where they are. They go home like rockets. But you have to watch it for two months in the loft. It's not easy. If you remove too many cocks, the loft becomes too empty. They can't fight each other anymore. Another advantage is that those fresh pigeons on Monday already train well. They push the others to start training again. I see advantages in this system," Oliver says. Many fanciers don't think this way. They remove them. Oliver
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(captions: Interior view of a section of the young pigeons. / André's dog was taken over.)
...looks at a lot of things from a different viewpoint. "Mind you, I'm talking about cocks. Hens always have to come along. A cock can only perform poorly if it's injured. If it's last nine times in a row, it still goes along on the next flight. Staying home is not an option."
At the moment of the visit (mid-June) there were no problems with mutual pairing among the hens. "When I was very young, guys my age in Croatia often had earrings. It was hugely popular. I didn't want that, because I wasn't first. If I'd worn it first, I would have wanted to. After that tattoos were popular. Again I wasn't first, so I didn't want it. I don't want to be like everyone else. This is my philosophy in the pigeon sport. I like to think out of the box. Sometimes that works, sometimes not. There are no guarantees."
De week van Argenton (The week of Argenton)
The week before Argenton they flew Noyon in Pulderbos. "I clocked them all at 18 minutes, but there was no speed in it. I had one early pigeon and the others weren't early. I told Rik (Hermans) I need to be different, otherwise I can't beat them. I need to take more risks. Tuesday evening before Argenton I basketed my hens for Quiévrain. They gave very overcast and rainy weather. A risk. I came into the club and they told me my young pigeons looked good. These are my old pigeons I said. Rik heard this and said: Why do you have those [entered]? You're basketing that Thursday for Argenton. I know it I said. They started teasing me a bit. We'll make sure they don't get released (laughs).
They were eventually released at 11 o'clock. I was already a bit nervous and called Eddy Janssens. Why aren't they releasing? Eddy said I had to be patient. You know that I called Van Vugt-Donckers on Tuesday. He's a real speed specialist. What do you think, Dirk? Will they release tomorrow in Quiévrain? He told me: Oliver, I'm 99 percent sure they'll fly, but I can't guarantee you 100 percent. I found this training necessary for Argenton. I'd already planned it ten to twelve days in advance in my preparation. If I hadn't done this, I couldn't win. I'm convinced of that. The hens thus came home from Quiévrain. Each hen could fly halfway alongside their pigeon [mate] except for three hens. Their nest box was completely closed. They could see their pigeon, but not fly next to it. They then sometimes flew into another box and were then already seen as intruders by the others. Two of those three hens were my first and third pigeon on Argenton. The third was late. Since I didn't fully know the pigeons yet I took them over from André I wanted to see how they'd react to this. That's why I do it. I know from experience that this can be a good motivation. The pigeon comes home, she can see the pigeon, but can't get to it. There was a bit of a fight in the loft and jealousy. The other hens ultimately weren't with their pigeon either. They could only sit next to it. I now let them not fight among themselves, but sometimes I do allow that. I change a lot. If they'd predicted headwind for Argenton, I would have done it completely differently. Then I'd let them together for perhaps forty minutes before basketing. In the Netherlands I never did anything on the day of basketing. I always put the pigeons in the dark and basket them calmly. There are many things you can do, but there are also many wrong ways. If you choose the wrong motivation for the predicted wind, you're going to pay for it." When I ask whether it isn't better to basket the hens calmly each time and not show them, he replies that this isn't bad. But it's the safe way. "If you motivate a yearling cock, do you know what goes on in his head? He then goes into the basket and fights all day and night. A pigeon goes into the basket and lies down. It rests, and a cock only loses energy. That's why so many people don't know how to play with a cock. I know perfectly how I can restore my loft quickly. I never have problems with that. I'm always ready for the next flight. Many fanciers succeed the next flight less well if the previous one was heavy. That's rarely or never the case here. They don't fly every Wednesday Quiévrain as training. Only if I want to win, if it's for an important flight." So which important national flight are they flying Quiévrain for next? "Maybe, if the circumstances call for it." I ask him why he thinks this works so well. He shows me messages from another champion who competed the week after Argenton, at La Châtre. He copied Oliver's advice and did great with it. "It's a small piece of the puzzle. The quality of the pigeons and their health have to be top. Everything has to be top. I did it for Argenton for various reasons. My pigeons often fly better because I fool them. I pull tricks with them. My pigeons never know what's going to happen.
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For example, I let the cocks fly Quiévrain as training. They come home and there's no hen ready for them. The next day I drive them twenty kilometers away and then their hen is ready. They always expect hens, but they never know whether there will actually be one. Many fanciers say this doesn't mean anything, but I think it does. I play with them."
De belangrijkheid van bijproducten (The importance of supplements)
Oliver believes in supplements. "They're important. I use a lot of them, because I don't want to use much medication. I try to exclude the use of medication as much as possible with supplements. For the airways I often use Paloma Respir. This is a natural supplement. I also very often give Paloma Blue. I've given this last one for ten years and it's very good. It's a natural product. I also give supplements from Dokter Brockamp and Vydex. Carbosol and Recovery Superior are two good products from Vydex." This last one is the best product for quick recovery, Oliver thinks. He doesn't give it right at arrival home. Then there are electrolytes (Belgasol or Tollyamine Forte and Nano Tollyamine) in the water, but later in the evening. Especially if it was a heavy flight. If it wasn't a heavy flight, electrolytes are sufficient according to him. Dr. Brockamp Probac C-M-K is also given. He sometimes uses this in combination with Dr. Brockamp Probac Carbopower. Probac 1000 is also used. CPM from DHP Cultura and Roni from Comed for young pigeons are also good supplements according to Oliver. This last one is given from weaning onward. If he says anything about feed, it's in spring for the young pigeons. Natural Lookolie with Natural Biergist every ten days. During the sport season nothing changes about the feed. "I don't like doing things about the feed. The pigeons eat better if there's nothing extra. I do say something about the feed still, but rarely. If it can escape from me, I'll let it be. Recently I visited a Belgian top fancier. He also gave supplements over the feed for years, but doesn't do it anymore now. The results stayed the same. All kinds of oils over the feed? It's all nonsense," according to Oliver.
Zonder medicatie gaat het niet (It doesn't work without medication)
The old pigeons are vaccinated against paramyxo and pox. For the first time in his career they were also vaccinated against paratyphoid, on the advice of André Roodhooft. This all happens in the spring. After the season it depends on the decision of Team Eijerkamp. Usually the young ones are dewormed in autumn with Orniflox, and given a repeat treatment against paramyxo once more. They're also vaccinated against pox. Since this year they're also given yellow drops. "Of course I also give medicines. No distinction is made between cocks and hens. Before the season they're treated for trichomonas and the airways. Every three to four flights they're treated for the airways. For Argenton they were given OCG from Dr. Van der Sluis. "If a very important flight is coming, you have to give them something I think. I used to try it the natural way, but that doesn't work. They can fly at top level for five to six weeks like that, but afterward they decline. Monday and Tuesday it's given in the week of an important flight. So they get it for special flights or if I see the performances are a bit less. I clocked them at eighteen minutes from Noyon (the week before Argenton), but not early enough. So I gave them OCG on Monday in preparation. They weren't sharp enough. You can already tell that at arrival home. A pigeon that's in order lands right on the landing board and doesn't lose a second at home. That wasn't the case with that Noyon." He alternates it with BelgaTai from Belgica De Weerd. Once a year they also get Tollisan Broncho Sprint. "They usually respond very well to that. I think it's necessary. There are many flights in a year, and pigeons also need to train, especially in wet mornings. Many people who play at a very high level don't admit this so honestly. That's a shame, because I know they're not telling the truth. Many fanciers claim they act more naturally and don't give medicine anymore, but that's nonsense. You can't play a whole season well naturally. I know that, because I've tried it. I'd find that ideal, but it just doesn't work. You need some help. Someone who achieves incredible results — you can be sure he's used something. Of course doping-free. I can't lie and say I don't give it. Would I have won otherwise if I hadn't given anything? It's possible, but I have to say that I had 35 prizes out of 38 pigeons. It wasn't bad. A week later at La Châtre I had 31 out of 35, but I wasn't early enough (then they got nothing). La Châtre, the week after the national win, wasn't good enough for me. After Argenton I had so many visitors and phone calls. My boss came by too. I wasn't focused enough. Besides, the wind wasn't that good either. But it could have been better than this performance. I know what I did wrong. I prepared them for a harder race. At the start of the week I constantly look at the weather forecasts. I also talk with other fanciers. We expect a race of 1,250 to 1,300 meters per minute, they told me. That was the general feeling on Monday and Tuesday. Later, due to the busy week, I no longer paid attention to it, but from Wednesday the forecasts had changed to a lighter race. It became almost 1,500 meters per minute. For me that makes a big difference. Many people do the same thing every week. They feed the same thing every week on that day. For me that's normally never the case. Everything under 1,300 m/min I prepare differently. If it's for instance a strong tailwind on Wednesday and they predict similar conditions on Saturday, I won't hesitate to let them fly Quiévrain on Wednesday."
De jongen met de handrem op spelen (Playing the young ones with the handbrake on)
By mid-June Oliver had already lost fifty to sixty young pigeons. Notably, these weren't lost on races, but at home. "I think there are a lot of fanciers here in the area who let their pigeons loose, so I need to adjust my system in the future. The birds of prey have undoubtedly also had their share in this in the spring." With the young pigeons he wants to perform strongly. "In the future I definitely want to win nationally with the young ones, but I doubt whether that will succeed already this year. I'm being somewhat more cautious than usual. I really like playing with young pigeons, but I can't fully play my own way this year. I have to build in caution, because we need to build a team for next year," Oliver says. The young pigeons are played on the trap door. At the start of the season it's done with caution. "Maybe in the course of the year, when it's been warm for five weeks so to speak, when the national
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...flights come into sight. I do like periods with the young ones to drive [race] extra. Distance doesn't matter. I never drive very far. André also told me that 30 to 35 kilometers is far enough. But on the other hand, what is 35 kilometers for them? They're home in 25 minutes. If I release them at home, they fly for an hour. Still something to think about," says Oliver. The young ones are darkened until the longest day. Presumably they're given light again three weeks later, but he still discusses this in detail with some fanciers here. "Presumably from six in the morning to twenty-two in the evening. These are new lofts for me, so it's a new experience. I don't do the breeding myself. I receive the pigeons from my boss, but I do have an aversion to multiple rounds. I want a wide group of roughly the same age."
Geweldige baas (Great boss)
Pigeon racing is Oliver's passion. Doing in life what you love is a dream for many. Yet the situation weighs on him. "It's really not easy for me. The results with the pigeons are great. Pigeon racing is my passion, but people don't know exactly what it all demands. My family is in Croatia the whole time. I see them two to three times a year. Luckily there's WhatsApp and Facebook, but of course it's not the same. It wasn't my plan to stay this long." Over time the idea of Oliver's family maybe moving to the Netherlands played, or is Croatia the best option? "I've decided to buy a house in Croatia. It's been renovated. My family now lives in a new house. My wife and children are happy. We have something that's ours. Next year it will be ten years (silence). I don't know how long I'll stay here still, but I still have plans I want to achieve with the pigeons. Besides and my boss knows this of course they'll have to look for someone new to replace me. Normally I would have to pack my suitcase after this national win from Argenton and go home. I already told everyone in winter. I came to Belgium to win a national flight and I will win it
1ste nationaal Argenton 15.386 oude duiven (1st national Argenton 15,386 old pigeons)
Argenton was a birthday gift for Oliver. "A little present from me to myself. In 2025 in the Netherlands I also won both the first and second prize of about 4,000 pigeons on my birthday. It's becoming a tradition (laughs). I don't usually celebrate birthdays, but this is nice of course." Oliver dares to voice ambition. For some people this can come across as pretentious, but he is the least of that. He's a likeable guy who listens to others. Heart on his sleeve, but full of good intentions. You can talk about pigeons with him for hours. "Actually I'm quite modest. Getting a lot of attention doesn't really interest me. When I win, you won't see me very enthusiastic. It does make me happy inside. If you win a national flight, that's a very special moment in your life. I understand that people can react enthusiastically then, but I mainly want to stay calm and quiet then. Not stand out. Eddy Janssens told me: You mustn't make things bigger than they are. Stay modest, and he's right. But I'm rarely happy with the results. I always look for someone who was better than me. I shake that person's hand then and congratulate him. Then I want to know how he did it. How I can beat him in the future. I knew from my first steps here in the Pulderbos lofts that I was going to win nationally this year. Many people didn't believe it. It was only a question of when. Many people say: You shouldn't talk, just wait until it happens and then you can talk. No, I'm not ashamed to predict it in advance, because I know I'm going to win. I can say with certainty that no one wanted to win Argenton nationally more than me. That's one of the reasons why I win too. I think the pigeons also feel my energy. I said to my boss: I'll have won a national flight in Belgium after three national flights. Of course I was also a bit surprised myself when the pigeon flew in. I was quite calm. The Dutch top fancier Peter Pennekamp spoke to me the evening before Argenton. I said to him: Peter, why don't you come tomorrow to watch the arrivals from Argenton. I feel that I can win the first national and then you'll see them coming. He said to me: Oliver, if you mean this, I'll jump in the car and come. He knows me from before. He had to play against me. If the pigeon won sixth, seventh or eighth national, I'd have been satisfied too, but I had the feeling it was going to be better. Before she was on the antenna, I already saw that she was the first marked one. She had to win for me. That's why she was the first marked one. For me it's now becoming a big challenge. It's now gone to the breeding loft. Now I have to try to win nationally for me with another pigeon," Oliver says. Four weeks later it was almost that time already. On the fourth of July Team Eijerkamp won the second national from Sancoins against 9,582 old pigeons. They had to concede by 54 centimeters to Nick & Roger Thys.
An overview of the best results of "Belgian Dream" (without duplicates) which this season only missed her prize from Bourges and after Argenton moved to the breeding loft:
Argenton: national: 1/15,386 p. (fastest of 37,697 p.)
Toury: 1/4,933 p.
Noyon: 1/1,425 p.
Noyon: 4/1,502 p.
Bourges: national: 8/11,056 p.
Noyon: 15/1,190 p.
Bourges: zonal: 16/2,638 p.
Bourges: zonal: 33/1,288 p.
Bourges: national: 62/17,163 p.
Melun: 67/1,942 p.
20th national ace pigeon K.B.D.B. GHF Yearling Pigeons 2025
...in 2026. Everyone laughed then, because they know how hard it is. Even my boss didn't believe it. He said to me: Oliver, the first season you'll have to learn how things work in Belgium. In 2027 we'll see. I said to him: If I win, I'll go home. But I have such a good boss. We have a great relationship. There have never been problems between us. So I'll stay. I think that we're still only at the beginning of something great."
Those who know Oliver know that he'll probably turn out to be right. Belgian pigeon racing must from now on reckon more with Team Eijerkamp.
Tom Iwens
