“SEVENTH INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE”.
ON
THE 24th SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE
(THE BIGGEST & GREATEST PIGEON RACE IN THE WORLD!)
(THE RACE WITH THE PROVEN TRACK RECORD)
(THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN THE PIGEON WORLD)
DUE TO BE HELD AT
HERON BANKS GOLF & RIVER ESTATE,
SOUTH AFRICA
ON
SATURDAY 1st FEBRUARY 2020.
A NEW SEASON STARTS IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN SUNSHINE.
OVERALL PRIZE MONEY IS US$1.60 MILLION US DOLLARS
(£1.33 MILLION POUNDS).
1st PRIZE IS A STAGGERING US$300,000 (£250,000).
THE 5 x HOT SPOT RACES IN THE 2019/20 RACE SERIES WILL PAY OUT US$247,500 (£206,250) IN PRIZE MONEY.
36 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES ENTER 3,632 PIGEONS.
RACE RESULTS FOR HOT SPOT RACE 3,
TRAINING RACE 17 & TRAINING RACE 18.
This is my seventh International Press Release and it follows my earlier six International Press Releases which contained all the race results for Training Races 1 to 16 and also Hot Spot Race 1 and Hot Spot Race 2.
LIVESTREAM was up and running for HOT SPOT RACE 3, which took place on Friday 28th December 2019 and the 2,071 pigeons were liberated all together from VERKEERDEVLEI at 05.30 from 264km (164 miles) in fine and warm conditions with a tail wind, with a temperature of 15c (58f) and a fairly fast race was anticipated. The temperature was due to rise through the day and at 09.40 it was already 28c (84f) and by later in the it had risen to 31c (90f). This total was made up of 1,728 International pigeons, which included 145 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 41 pigeons from Ireland, plus 343 pigeons from the host country South Africa. The Hold-Back List showed just no pigeons and this included none from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland.
Once again I was up bright and early to watch the pigeons return to the race loft and it was a beautiful morning in South Africa and yet another ideal racing day and I predicted it would take the winning pigeons 2 hours 50 minutes to cover the distance and at 08.18 a gang of about 30 pigeons approached the race loft bang on line, swung round the race loft and then finally they hit the trapping area and within a few minutes literally hundreds of pigeons had been officially recorded.
CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st OPEN goes to WATTLES SYNDICATE from AUSTRALIA with pigeon named CUNNAMULLA bred by ACES RACING PIGEONS, which was officially clocked at 08.18.29.15 to record a winning velocity of 1715ypm (1566.90m/m), (26.115m/s) or 58mph. Unfortunately, the owners of this pigeon had NOT-ACTIVATED it so did not win the US$17,500 1st Prize. Taking 2nd Team Florea Sorin from Romania, 3rd Team Gebr Vieberink from Netherlands,
4th Pitone-Vielahn-Waldow Syndicate from Germany, 5th Team Germany – ZG Helios-Bucher+Gehrken from Switzerland, 6th Ervin Laro from Italy, 7th Master Team from Poland, 8th Combinatie Linfrom Netherlands, 9th Triple J Lofts from South Africa, these guys are having another fantastic season, 10th Internet-taubenschlag from Germany, 11th Team La Paloma from Germany, 12th Triple Js Platinum Ladies from South Africa, with a second pigeon bred by Triple J Lofts, 13th Moran, Bowden, Lopez, Vergara from Ireland, 14th Team Lehrte from Germany, 15th Buttner G i A from Poland, 16th Club Heilbron Posduifklub from South Africa, 17th Ulrich Franzsander from Germany, 18th Abdullwhahab Aldahoum from Kuwait, 19th Ahmed Al Malki from Qatar and 20th Ali Hussain from Kuwait. The top twenty in this result were separated by 20.43 seconds and had a total of 11 different countries represented and a total of 15 different countries represented in the top 50, with 50th being 2 minutes 43.63 seconds away from the actual race winner. It was great to see that the first seven Open positions today were all taken by different countries. A total of 1,957 pigeons were officially clocked by 19.21, which included 134 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 39 from Ireland leaving 114 pigeons to return to the race loft. The Benzing Clocking System was left on at the missing pigeons started to roll in from 06.17 and by 15.29 a total of 1,992 pigeons had been officially recorded, leaving just 79 to return to the race loft. All in all an excellent race with very good returns.
HOT SPOT RACE 3 US$49,500 (£39,600) TWENTY CASH PRIZES WINNERS were won as follows:-
1st US$17,500 (£14,000) went to 2nd Open, 2nd US$10,000 (£8,000) went to 3rd Open, 3rd US$5,000 (£4,000) went to 4th Open, 4th US$2,500 (£2,000) went to 5th Open, 5th US$2,000 (£1,600) went to 6th Open, 6th-10th US$1,250 (£1,000) EACH went to 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th & 11th Open, 11th-15th US$750 (£600) EACH went to 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th & 16th Open, 16th-20th US$500 (£400) EACH went to 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st & 22nd Open. This showed that pigeon that won 1st and 17th Open was NOT-ACTIVATED so was not eligible to compete for any of this Prize Money.
THE HOT SPOT RACE ACE PIGEON AWARD offers a 1st PRIZE of US$10,000 (£8,000) and the leader after the first three races is as follows:- TEAM GEBR VIEBERINK from NETHERLANDS with pigeon named JACINTA with a combined flying time of 08.20.46.30 up 9 places from Hot Spot Race 2.
2-BIRD AVERAGE WINNER & US$2,000 (£1,600) for HOT SPOT RACE 3 were as follows:-
Winning pigeons have to be ACTIVATED and they must be entered in the same Team. 1st SOUTH AFRICA, 1st OVERALL was CLUB HEILBRON POSDUIFKLUB (Team 1) from SOUTH AFRICA with a winning velocity of 52.068 m/s with both pigeons being bred by JURIE ERWEE & SON (TRIPLE J LOFTS). 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 26th Overall went to Paul Smith Syndicate (Team 13) from Stansted Mountfitchet with a winning velocity of 49.785 m/s and both pigeons bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet. 1st IRELAND, 43rd Overall went to Joe Kennedy & Son (Team 1) with a winning of 40.094 m/s and both pigeons bred by Joe Kennedy & Son from Belfast. WELL DONE TO ALL THESE WINNING COMPETITORS.
3-BIRD AVERAGE WINNER & US$3,000 (£2,400) for HOT SPOT RACE 3 were as follows:-
Winning pigeons have to be ACTIVATED and they must be entered in the same Team. 1st SOUTH AFRICA, 1st OVERALL was TRIPLE J’s PLATINUM LADIES (Team 1) with a winning velocity of 75.164 m/s with all 3 pigeons bred by JURIE ERWEE & SON (TRIPLE J LOFTS) from SOUTH AFRICA. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 9th Overall went to Paul Smith Syndicate (Team 13) from Stansted Mountfitchet with winning velocity of 73.505 m/s with all 3 pigeons bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet. 1st IRELAND, 31st Overall went to Thorpe Zeballos (Team 1) with winning velocity of 70.330 m/s with all 3 pigeons bred by Herbie Thorpe. WELL DONE TO ALL THESE WINNING COMPETITORS.
RECORDS ARE CREATED EVERY YEAR AT THE SAMDPR BUT FOR THE THIRD HOT SPOT IN A ROW JURIE ERWEE & SON (TRIPLE J LOFTS) FROM SOUTH AFRICA HAVE BRED EVERY PIGEON THAT HAS WON THE 1st OVERALL POSITIONS IN HOT SPOT RACES 1, 2 & 3. THIS WILL SURELY BE A RECORD THAT WILL STAND FOR MANY YEARS TO COME. THIS REALLY IS A FANTASTIC ACHIEVEMENT FLYING AGAINST SOME OF THE BEST FANCIERS IN THE WORLD TODAY.
THE KNOCKOUT COMPETITION WINNER WINS A STAGGERING US$25,000 (£20,000), only fully ACTIVATED PIGEONS can compete and this competition starts on HOT SPOT RACE 2. Please read the Rules/Regulations on the SAMDPR Website www.samdpr.com as it is one of the most exciting competitions in the race series, with a percentage of pigeons being knocked out in each round. The winner being the first pigeon that was entered in this competition that is clocked in the FINAL RACE. A total of 1,785 pigeons were officially entered into this exciting competition and this included 1,546 International pigeons, which included 239 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 46 pigeons from Ireland, plus 239 pigeons from South Africa. A total of 1,161 pigeons (65%) of the entered pigeons will go through to the next round which will be held on HOT SPOT RACE 3 and this total includes 86 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 31 pigeons from Ireland. So now for HOT SPOT RACE 4 there will now be 639 pigeons (35%) competing and this total includes 42 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 20 pigeons from Ireland. See full list of pigeons still left in by logging onto www.samdpr.com
GLOBAL NOMINATIONS for HOT SPOT RACE 3 amounted to US$13,758.10c (approx. £11,006) and had a total of 359 pigeons entered which included 7 from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland and there were 1,287 Nominations. There was no United Kingdom or Ireland winners. WELL DONE TO ALL THE WINNERS.
CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 26th OPEN went to PAUL SMITH SYNDICATE from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named PAULS COMMAND which was bred by KEVIN HIBBERT from ROTHERHAM, which was officially clocked at 08.19.17.57 just 48.42 seconds after the actual race winner. Taking 2nd UK, 41st Open Foster Sons & Daughter with pigeon bred by this partnership from Liss, 3rd UK, 58th Open Essex Superstars with pigeon bred by Paul Smith & Paul Stacey from Rayleigh, 4th UK, 62nd Open another for Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet, 5th UK, 79th Open Murray & Mills with pigeon bred by this partnership from Leeds, 6th UK, 90th Open TadT with pigeon bred by Tad Truszkowski from Melton Mowbray, 7th UK, 119th Open another for Foster Sons & Daughter with a second pigeon bred by this partnership from Liss, 8th UK, 120th Open Millys Loft with pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 9th UK, 129th Open Pieter Oberholster with pigeon bred by Pieter Oberholster from Keysoe, 10th UK, 142nd Open Zandys Dream Team from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Paul Smith & Hein Beneke from South Africa, 11th UK, 151st Open Berkshire Boys with pigeon bred by Maurice O’Donnell from Dungarvan, 12th UK, 229th Open another for Berkshire Boys with a second pigeon bred by Maurice O’Donnell from Dungarvan, 13th UK, 234th Open another for Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Matt Parker from Burton-on-Trent, 14th UK, 238th Open Brian Clayburn with pigeon bred by Brian Clayburn from Ackworth, a past winner of the SAMDPR, 15th UK, 242nd Open Bet-Right Lofts entered by Jerry Wright from Lutterworth with pigeon bred by Michael Betts from Doncaster, 16th UK, 263rd Open Team Islwyn with pigeon bred by Robert Jones from Port Talbot, 17th UK, 283rd Open Obelisk Syndicate entered by Clive & Sue Barrett from Taunton with pigeon bred by Derek Nicholls from Barry, 18th UK, 294th Open Team Ede with pigeon bred by Darren Ede from Southampton, 19th UK, 354th Open another for Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with a second pigeon bred by Matt Parker from Burton-on-Trent and 20th UK, 316th Open Syndicate Lofts UK with pigeon bred by Peter Fox from Bangor. A good result for the UK Team which had 6 pigeons in the top 90 in the Open. A total of 134 United Kingdom pigeons were officially clocked by 19.21, leaving 11 to return to the race loft. More returned on the Saturday and by 15.29 a total of 139 had been officially recorded, leaving just 6 still to return to the race loft.
THE UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY CHALLENGE WINNERS for HOT SPOT RACE 3 were as follows:-
1st UNITED KINGDOM & US$125 (£100), 26th Open Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon named Pauls Command bred by Kevin Hibbert from Rotherham, 2nd UNITED KINGDOM & US$75 (£60), 58th Open Essex Superstars with pigeon named Essex Triumph bred by Paul Smith & Paul Stacey from Rayleigh, 3rd UNITED KINGDOM & US$50 (£40), 62nd Open another for Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon named Pauls Pursuit bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet. UNITED KINGDOM now has a total of 115 entries in this category and HOT SPOT RACE 5 offers:- 1st US$4,125 (£3,300), 2nd US$2,475 (£1,980), 3rd US$1,650 (£1,320). The FINAL RACE now offers a 1st Prize of US$4,800 (£3,840) to the winner. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THESE WINNERS.
UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY/REGIONAL NOMINATIONS for HOT SPOT RACE 3. There were no entries.
CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st IRELAND, 13th OPEN went to MORAN, BOWDEN, LOPEZ, VERGARA with pigeon named PS bred by ANDREW MORAN, which was officially clocked at 08.18.44.42, just 15.27 seconds behind the actual race winner. Taking 2nd Ireland, 63rd Open Jackpot Lofts with pigeon bred by Karl Donnelly, 3rd Ireland, 80th Open Sean Hunt & Family with pigeon bred by Sean Hunt & Family, 4th Ireland, 128th Open another for Jackpot Lofts with a second pigeon bred by Karl Donnelly, 5th Ireland, 144th Open Joe Kennedy & Son with pigeon bred by Joe Kennedy & Son and 6th Ireland, 214th Open Maurice O’Donnell + E Ferman with pigeon bred by Maurice O’Donnell. A total of 39 Ireland pigeons were officially clocked by 19.21, leaving just 2 to return to the race loft. No more pigeons returned on the Saturday to the race loft.
I CLOSE THIS REPORT ON A VERY SAD NOTE AS I HAVE JUST BEEN NOTIFIED THAT SEAN HUNT WHO HAS PIGEONS ENTERED INTO THIS RACE PASSED AWAY ON CHRISTMAS EVE. MY SINCERE CONDOLENCES TO THE REST OF HIS FAMILY AT THIS SAD TIME.
THE IRISH COUNTRY CHALLENGE WINNERS for HOT SPOT RACE 3 were as follows:- 1st IRELAND & US$125 (£100), 13th Open Moran, Bowden, Lopez, Vergara with pigeon named PS bred by Andrew Moran, 2nd IRELAND & US$75 (£60), 63rd Open Jackpot Lofts with pigeon named Irish Pearl bred by Karl Donnelly, 3rd & IRELAND US$50 (£40), 128th Jackpot Lofts with pigeon named Leprechaun bred by Karl Donnelly. IRELAND now has a total of 14 entries in this category and HOT SPOT RACE 5 now offers:- 1st US$590 (£472), 2nd US$354 (£283), 3rd US$236 (£189). The FINAL RACE now offers a 1st Prize of US$760 (£608) to the winner. CONGRATULATUIONS TO ALL THESE WINNERS.
IRISH COUNTRY/REGIONAL NOMINATIONS for HOT SPOT RACE 3. There were no pigeons entered.
THE OVERALL AVERAGES are now up and running and after 19 races stands as follows:- 1st GERMANY, 1st OPEN goes to M u W HELD from GERMANY with pigeon named SYLT HELD 335 bred by M u W HELD, with a combined flying time of 24.09.39.28 holding same place from the last race. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 9th OPEN goes to ZANDYS DREAM TEAM from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named ZANDYS EXPECTATION bred by PAUL SMITH & HEIN BENEKE from SOUTH AFRICA, with a combined flying time of 25.05.56.07 up 1 place from the last race. 1st IRELAND, 18th OPEN goes to PETER LUCAS with pigeon named ULYSES bred by PETER LUCAS with a combined flying time of 25.22.06.67 holding same place from the last race. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THESE FANCIERS.
LIVESTREAM was up and running for TRAINING RACE 17, which took place on Tuesday 31st December 2019 and the 1,992 pigeons were liberated all together from KOPPIES at 07.20 from 62km (39 miles) in fine and warm conditions with a light head wind, with a temperature of 21c (70f) and a good steady race was anticipated. This total was made up by 1,655 International pigeons, which included 138 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 40 pigeons from Ireland, plus 337 pigeons from the host country South Africa. The Hold-Back List showed 12 pigeons were held back and this included 3 from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland.
Once again I was up bright and early to watch the pigeons return to the race loft and it was another beautiful morning in South Africa and an ideal racing day and at 08.11 a gang of about 60 pigeons approached the race loft bang on line, swung round a couple of times and then they hit the trapping area and within a few minutes literally hundreds of pigeons had been officially recorded.
CONGRATULATIONS for winning 1st OPEN goes to ABDULLWHAHAB ALDAHOUM from KUWAIT with pigeon named G SON ALFAAKHER 198 and bred by ALDAHOUM TEAM, which was officially clocked at 08.10.54.43 to record a winning velocity of 1346ypm (1198.62m/m), (19.977m/s) or 46 mph. Taking 2nd Combinatie Lin from Netherlands, 3rd Team Frankenland from Germany, 4th Brieftaubenfreunde OWL from Germany, 5th Karl Heinz & Timo Wagner from Germany, past winners of the SAMDPR, this pigeon named HEARTBEAT is flying exceptionally well and is currently holding 2nd in the Overall Averages, 6th Jassim Al-Kulaib from Kuwait, 7th Wattles Syndicate from Australia, 8th Aldahoum Team Loft from Kuwait, 9th Lothar Krueger from Germany, 10th Richard Callahan from United States of America, 11th Club Kransfontein Resiesduif Klub from South Africa, 12th Foster Sons & Daughter from United Kingdom, 13th Aclo Racing from South Africa, 14th Khalid Al Emadi from Qatar, 15th Buchloh – Kossow from Germany, 16th Martin Hetzel from Germany, 17th Tean Valya + Rosen Dobrevi from Bulgaria, 18th Hok Jos Vercammen from Belgium, 19th Hayder Al-Hadad from Kuwait and 20th another for Combinatie Lin from Netherlands. The top twenty in this result were separated by just 29.74 seconds and had a total of 10 different countries represented and a total of 14 different countries in the top 50, with 50th being just 54.89 seconds away from the actual race winner. A total of 1,979 pigeons were officially clocked by 18.32, which included 136 pigeons from the United Kingdom and all 49 from Ireland leaving just 13 pigeons to return to the race loft.
GLOBAL NOMINATIONS for TRAINING RACE 17 amounted to US$1,274.15c (approx. £1,020) and had a total of 69 pigeons entered which included 1 from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland and there were a total of 206 Nominations. There were no United Kingdom or Irish winners. WELL DONE TO ALL THE WINNERS.
CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 12th OPEN went to FOSTER SONS & DAUGHTER with pigeon named VET EM AGAIN and bred by FOSTER SONS & DAUGHTER from LISS, which was officially clocked at 08.11.29.23, just 34.80 seconds behind the race winner. This pigeon had previously won 187th, 8th and 41st Open in this race series. Taking 2nd UK, 29th Open TadT with pigeon bred by Tad Truszkowski from Melton Mowbray, this pigeon won 3 x 1st UK earlier on in this race series, 3rd UK, 35th Open Zandys Dream Team from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Paul Smith & Hein Beneke from South Africa, 4th UK, 75th Open Millys Loft with pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 5th UK, 76th Open Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Kevin Hibbert from Rotherham, 6th UK, 89th Open Team Ettrick with pigeon bred by Bobby Dalziel from Ettrick, 7th UK, 92nd Open Scotlands Own Syndicate entered by Barry Kinnear from Edinburgh with pigeon bred by Mr+Mrs Trodden, 8th UK, 118th Open Alistair Hogg with pigeon bred by Alistair Hogg from Winchburg, 9th UK, 119th Open another for Millys Loft with a second pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 10th UK, 149th Open Obelisk Syndicate entered by Clive & Sue Barrett from Taunton with pigeon bred by Derek Nicholls from Barry, 11th UK, 162nd Open another Millys Loft with a third pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 12th UK, 171st Open Team Lincs with pigeon bred by Paul Stacey from Rayleigh, 13th UK, 190th Open another for Alistair Hogg with a second pigeon bred by Alistair Hogg from Winchburg, 14th UK, 203rd Open William Donachie with pigeon bred by William Donachie from Dundee, 15th UK, 205th Open another for Zandys Dream Team from Stansted Mountfitchet with a second pigeon bred by Paul Smith & Hein Beneke from South Africa, 16th UK, 234th Open Guys Lofts with pigeon bred by Tony Guy from Wolverhampton, 17th UK, 261st Open Team Ede with pigeon bred by Darren Ede from Southampton, 18th UK, 278th Open Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with a second pigeon bred by Kevin Hibbert from Rotherham, 19th UK, 316th Open another for Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with a third pigeon bred by Kevin Hibbert from Rotherham and 20th UK, 324th Open Gerry Francis with pigeon bred by Gerry Francis from Bagshot, this is Gerry’s first go at the SAMDPR mainly because he was so busy with his football career, a past England Football Captain and Manager of quite a few top teams in the UK. A good race for the United Kingdom Team with a total of 133 pigeons being officially clocked by 08.55, leaving just 5 pigeons to return to the race loft, 3 more pigeons returned up to 18.32, leaving just 2 to make it back to the race loft.
UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY/REGIONAL NOMINATIONS for TRAINING RACE 17. There were no entries.
CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st IRELAND, 41st OPEN went to JOE KENNEDY & SON with pigeon named DOUBLE TROUBLE, bred by JOE KENNEDY & SON which was officially clocked at 08.11.43.54, just 49.11 seconds after the actual race winner. This pigeon has been flying very well and had previously taken 1st Ireland. Taking 2nd Ireland, 68th Open Andy Quirke with pigeon bred by Andy Quirke, 3rd Ireland, 107th Open Moran, Bowden, Lopez, Vergara with pigeon bred by Andrew Moran, 4th Ireland, 156th Open another for Joe Kennedy & Son with a second pigeon bred by Joe Kennedy & Son, 5th Ireland, 246th Open Thorpe Zeballos with pigeon bred by Herbie Thorpe and then 6th Ireland, 344th Open Sean Donnelly with pigeon bred by Sean Donnelly. A good result for the Irish Team with all 40 pigeons being officially clocked by 08.27, leaving no pigeons missing.
IRISH COUNTRY/REGIONAL NOMINATIONS in TRAINING RACE 17. There were no entries.
THE OVERALL AVERAGES are now up and running and after 20 races stands as follows:- 1st GERMANY, 1st OPEN goes to K u W HELD from GERMANY with pigeon named SYLT HELD 335 bred by K u W HELD, with a combined flying time of 25.02.27.31 holding same place from the last race. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 8th OPEN goes to ZANDYS DREAM TEAM from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named ZANDYS EXPECTATION bred by PAUL SMITH & HEIN BENEKE from SOUTH AFRICA, with a combined flying time of 25.58.59.52 up 1 place from the last race. 1st IRELAND, 17th OPEN goes to PETER LUCAS with pigeon named ULYSES bred by PETER LUCAS with a combined flying time of 26.16.13.22 up 1 place from the last race. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THESE FANCIERS.
LIVESTREAM was up and running for TRAINING RACE 18, which took place on Thursday 2nd January 2020 and the 1,991 pigeons were liberated all together from KOPPIES at 07.15 from 62km (39 miles) in fine and warm conditions with a light head wind, with a temperature of 23c (72f) and a good steady race was anticipated. This total was made up by 1,651 International pigeons, which included 138 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 40 pigeons from Ireland, plus 340 pigeons from the host country South Africa. The Hold-Back List showed 9 pigeons were held back and this included 2 from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland.
Once again I was up bright and early to watch the pigeons return to the race loft and it was another beautiful morning in South Africa and an ideal racing day and at 08.01 a gang of about 100 pigeons approached the race loft bang on line, swung round a couple of times and then they hit the trapping area and within a few minutes literally hundreds of pigeons had been officially recorded.
CONGRATULATIONS for winning 1st OPEN goes to ABDULLAH AL-BAKHIT from SAUDI ARABIA with pigeon named MAZDA6 bred by ABDULLAH AL-BAKHIT, which was officially clocked at 08.01.22.52 to record a winning velocity of 1490ypm (1336.92m/m), (22.282m/s) or 50 mph. Taking 2nd Alhamli Team from United Arab Emirates, 3rd Defaulter Pigeon, 4th Karl Heinz & Timo Wagner from Germany, a past winner of the SAMDPR, 5th Westerwald from Germany, 6th No Sweat Syndicate from United States of America, 7th Loft Einkamerer from South Africa, 8th Fayez Al-Mea from Kuwait, 9th Neighbourhood Sissies from United States of America, 10th Urszula + Krzysztof Mazepa from Poland, 11th Eabad Wasmi from Kuwait, 12th Club Stellenberg Klub from South Africa, 13th Guenter Gaertner from Germany, 14th Club North West Pigeon Club from South Africa, 15th Hannelore Jaekel from Germany, 16th Team Schnell-Reich from Germany, 17th Peter Gana from Slovakia, 18th Joe Kennedy & Son from Ireland, 19th another for Alhamli Team from United Arab Emirates and 20th Hash Family Loft from United States of America. The top twenty in this result were separated by just 11.95 seconds and had a total of 9 different countries represented and a total of 15 different countries in the top 50, with 50th being just 13.79 seconds away from the actual race winner. A total of 1,905 pigeons were officially clocked by 18.56, which included all 130 pigeons from the United Kingdom and 38 from Ireland leaving just 86 pigeons to return to the race loft.
GLOBAL NOMINATIONS for TRAINING RACE 18 amounted to US$1,648.15c (approx. £1,318) and had a total of 71 pigeons entered which included none from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland and there were a total of 251 Nominations. There were no United Kingdom or Irish winners. WELL DONE TO ALL THE WINNERS.
CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 26th OPEN went to the ALISTAIR HOGG, with pigeon named ALIS DREAM which was bred by ALISTAIR HOGG from WINCHBURG, which was officially clocked at 08.01.38.39, just 15.87 seconds after the actual race winner. Alistair won 6th Open Final Race a few years ago and two years ago won a Brand New Motor Car in a Hot Spot Race. Taking 2nd UK, 49th Open Millys Loft with pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 3rd UK, 61st Open Foster Sons & Daughter with pigeon bred by this partnership from Liss, 4th UK, 82nd Open another for Millys Loft with a second pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 5th UK, 88th Open Zandys Dream Team from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Hein Beneke from South Africa, 6th UK, 116th Open another for Millys Loft with a third pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 7th UK, 138th Open Obelisk Syndicate with pigeon entered by Clive & Sue Barrett from Taunton and bred by Derek Nicholls from Barry, 8th UK, 146th Open Syndicate Lofts UK with pigeon bred by Peter Fox from Bangor, 9th UK, 199th Open Paul Smith Syndicate from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Matt Parker Fox from Burton-on-Trent, 10th UK, 211th Open Team Islwyn with pigeon bred by Robert Jones from Port Talbot, 11th UK, 237th Open TadT with pigeon bred by Tad Truszkowski from Melton Mowbray, 12th UK, 244th Open Bet-Right Lofts with pigeon bred by Jerry Wright from Lutterworth, 13th UK, 259th Open another for Millys Loft with a fourth pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 14th UK, 263rd Open another for Millys Loft with a fifth pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 15th UK, 361st Open Berkshire Boys with pigeon bred by Maurice O’Donnell from Dungarvan, 16th UK, 374th Open another for Team Islwyn with a second pigeon bred by Robert Jones from Port Talbot, 17th UK, 164th Open another for Millys Loft with a sixth pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 18th UK, 408th Open William Donachie with pigeon bred by William Donachie from Dundee, 19th UK, 409th Open another for Bet-Right Lofts entered by Jerry Wright from Lutterworth and with pigeon bred by Michael Betts from Doncaster and then 20th UK, 412th Open Team Ede with pigeon bred by Darren Ede from Southampton. A reasonable race for the United Kingdom Team with a total of 130 pigeons being officially clocked by 18.56, leaving just 8 pigeons to return to the race loft. The United Kingdom Team had 5 pigeons clocked in the top 88 in the Open, which in itself was a good performance.
UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY/REGIONAL NOMINATIONS for TRAINING RACE 18. There were no entries.
CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st IRELAND, 18th OPEN went to JOE KENNEDY & SON with pigeon named CHARLIES PYLON, bred by JOE KENNEDY & SON which was officially clocked at 08.01.34.06, just 11.54 seconds after the actual race winner. This partnership’s pigeon are flying exceedingly well so far in this race series. Taking 2nd Ireland, 48th Open Jackpot Lofts with pigeon bred by Karl Donnelly, 3rd Ireland, 64th Open another for Jackpot Lofts with a second pigeon bred by Karl Donnelly, 4th Ireland, 124th Open Andy Quirke with pigeon bred by Andy Quirke, 5th Ireland, 148th Open another for Joe Kennedy & Son with a second pigeon bred by Joe Kennedy & Son and then 6th Ireland, 161st Open Thorpe Zeballos with pigeon bred by Herbie Thorpe. A good result for the Irish Team with 38 pigeons being officially clocked by 18.56, leaving just 2 pigeons missing.
IRISH COUNTRY/REGIONAL NOMINATIONS in TRAINING RACE 18. There were no entries.
THE OVERALL AVERAGES are now up and running and after 21 races stands as follows:- 1st GERMANY, 1st OPEN goes to M u W HELD from GERMANY with pigeon named SYLT HELD 335 bred by M u W HELD, with a combined flying time of 25.49.36.15 holding same place from the last race.
1st UNITED KINGDOM, 8th OPEN goes to ZANDYS DREAM TEAM from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named ZANDYS EXPECTATION bred by PAUL SMITH & HEIN BENEKE from SOUTH AFRICA, with a combined flying time of 26.48.54.35 holding same place from the last race. 1st IRELAND, 16th OPEN goes to PETER LUCAS with pigeon named ULYSES bred by PETER LUCAS with a combined flying time of 27.06.33.05 up 1 place from the last race. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THESE FANCIERS.
Now we move on to HOT SPOT RACE 4, TRAINING RACE 19 & TRAINING RACE 20.
*****PLEASE NOTE:- This 2019/20 race programme below can be altered at any time, if the weather is not suitable another day will be selected. Also some of the race distances may alter slightly depending on the previous race or how the pigeons are coping with the earlier tosses and races. It should also be noted that there are more races in a week now, hopefully three a week and there are races now taking place on Sunday’s, Monday’s, Tuesday’s, Wednesday’s, Thursday’s and Saturday’s. It should also be mentioned that once the pigeons get to the 62km (39 miles) Training Point they go to this spot every day weather permitting for a Training Toss, however results are only published for an Official Training Race which are all listed below.
The remaining revamped Race Programme will be as follows:- HOT SPOT RACE 4 on Saturday 4th January 2020 from 300km (186 miles), followed by Training Race 19 on Tuesday 7th January 2020 from 62km (39 miles), followed by Training Race 20 on Thursday 9th January 2020 from 62km (39 miles), followed by Training Race 21 on Saturday 11th January 2020 from 114km (71 miles), followed by Training Race 22 on Wednesday 15th January 2020 from 62km (39 miles), followed by HOT SPOT RACE 5 on Saturday 18th January 2020 from 350km (217 miles), followed by Training Race 23 on Tuesday 21st January 2020 from 62km (39 miles), followed by Training Race 24 on Thursday 23rd January 2020 from 62km (39 miles), followed by Training Race 25 on Saturday 25th January 2020 from 62km (39 miles). A few more short training tosses will take place over the next few days prior to basketing taking place on Thursday 30th January 2020. Then the FINAL RACE takes place on Saturday 1st February 2020 from 525km (326 miles).
The Race Organisers (Air Sport Internationale) and all the Official Loft Staff in South Africa wish all fanciers/entrants/syndicates and competitors from literally all over the world the best of luck during the forthcoming 2019/20 race series.
The team of pigeons will not be rushed and the vastly experienced loft staff are very confident that within a few weeks these athletes of the skies will be back on track and ready for the big task in front of them. You can of course follow all the progress of what is happening on the SAMDPR Website www.samdpr.com
Of course, one of the main reasons for the success of this great race is the extremely professional way it has been run from the start and that they have always paid out all of their projected prize money every year since the race first started way back in 1997 and that is why it is now known the world over “AS THE BIGGEST AND GREATEST PIGEON RACE IN THE WORLD” and has been now been tagged as “THE RACE WITH THE PROVEN TRACK RECORD” and “THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN THE PIGEON WORLD”.
Numerous “Loft Reports”, “Updates”, “Photographs” and “Videos” have been placed on the informative SAMDPR website for all to see and these are all available now on the dedicated website www.samdpr.com You can also follow the SAMDPR on Facebook, with constant updates and short videos to view.
Although the race is now named THE SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE, the total to be paid out in cash and prizes in the 2019/20 race series exceeds US$1.55 Million American Dollars or approximately £1.29 Million Pounds Sterling. No other one-loft race in the world today can boast of such massive pay outs and this race is now in its twenty-fourth year and has for the last twenty-three years paid out all of its projected prize money, that is why its reputation of this great race has increased, plus it has already paid out in the last twenty-three races, prize money in excess of US$43 Million American Dollars (£30 Million Pounds Sterling), which is a remarkable achievement in itself in one loft racing and one that the race organisers are very proud of. It should also be mentioned that the Prize Money and Awards in THE 24th SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE will be the slightly more than paid out for THE 23rd SAMDPR. The FINAL RACE PRIZE MONEY in The 24th SAMDPR now exceeds US$1.20 Million American Dollars or around £1 Million Pounds Sterling.
***SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT*** I am sorry that I can’t add all the information about who bred all the pigeons or where they live because I do not have access to all this information so I can only publish details which I am in possession of at the time. If there are no details besides your winning pigeon/s then please contact me on reglofts@aol.com with your details and I will include these in my later International Press Reports. I personally do my best to give all the fanciers, entrants and breeders all the credit they and their pigeons deserve when they manage to get in the results so your help in this matter will be greatly appreciated.
For the first few races numerous pigeons of course will not trap, so do not worry if yours is clocked late. The main thing to consider over the first few shorter races is that all the pigeons will not trap quickly but if they have made it back to the race loft on Heron Banks Golf & River Estate they are there to fight another day. With each race the pigeons will learn a bit more, giving them more experience to tackle all the tasks that they are going to have in front of them during the testing 2019/20 training and race series.
All Training Races, Hot Spot Races and The Final Race will now count towards The 24th South African Million Dollar Overall ACE PIGEON Averages, which has a total of three superb cash prizes of US$25,500 (approx. £21,250), US$15,000 (approx. £12,500) and US$10,000 (approx. £8,333) for 1st, 2nd and 3rd in this category after The Final Race has been completed. This actually is a massive increase on the pay out over previous SAMDP Races.
GOOD LUCK TO ALL CONCERNED AND REGULAR “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASES”, “NEWSLETTERS” AND “UPDATES” WILL BE SENT OUT TO ALL COMPETITORS/ENTRANTS AND SYNDICATE SHAREHOLDERS ON A WEEKLY BASIS BY EMAIL OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS. ALSO WEEKLY “PRESS RELEASES” WILL BE SENT OUT TO BOTH OUR TWO PIGEON PUBLICATIONS NAMELY THE “BRITISH HOMING WORLD” AND “”THE RACING PIGEON” PLUS IT WILL ALSO BE ON MY REGENCY LOFTS WEB SITE www.regencylofts.com FOR ALL TO VIEW.
This is the “TWENTY-FOURTH YEAR” since this great International One Loft Race started and every year since day one the Organising Committee have created new competitions and I assume that this year will be no exception, more on this subject will be published as details come through from the race organisers.
HOW MANY OTHER ONE LOFT PIGEON RACES IN THE WORLD OFFER THIS SORT OF OPTION TO COMPETITORS AND ENTRANTS?
***WHAT CAN BE WON DURING THIS 2019/20 RACE SERIES*** Prizes and Special Awards now add up to a staggering US$1.55 Million American Dollars £1.29 Million Pounds Sterling). This total includes US$247,500 (£206,250) in 100 Hot Spot Cash Prizes over the 5 x Hot Spot Races as follows:- In each Hot Spot Race 1st US$17,500 (£14,583), 2nd US$10,000 (£8,333), 3rd US$5,000 (£4,167), 4th US$2,500 (£2,083), 5th US$2,000 (£1,667), 6th to 10th US$1,250 (£1,042) each, 11th to 15th US$750 (£625) each and 16th to 20th US$500 (£417) each. ONLY ACTIVATED PIGEONS CAN WIN ANY OTHER THESE CASH PRIZES. THESE 20 CASH PRIZES WILL GO TO THE FIRST 20 ACTIVATED PIGEONS IN EACH OF THE 5 x HOT SPOT RACES. Then a US$10,000 (£8,333) Hot Spot Ace Pigeon Award for the best pigeon in these 5 races, A Two-Bird Average Competition and a US$2,000 (£1,667) Cash Prize in each of the 5 x Hot Spot Races & The Final Race, A Three-Bird Average Competition and a US$3,000 (£2,500) Cash Prize in each of the 5 x Hot Spot Races & The Final Race, The South African Million Dollar Ace Pigeon Award carries US$50,000 in Prize Money, split into three cash prizes with 1st US$25,000 (£20,833), 2nd US$15,000 (£12,500) and 3rd US$10,000 (£8,333) Cash Prizes for the 3 pigeons with the best overall average in all the Official Training Races and 5 x Hot Spot Races and The Final Race. There will also be an overall Knockout Winner Competition and US$25,000 (£20,833) Prize Money, which starts on the Hot Spot 2 and the winner is the first one to be clocked in the “FINAL RACE” (over the past few years there has been around 40/60 pigeons still left in this exciting competition). There will also be 3 x Country Cash Prizes of US$125 (£104), US$75 (£63) and US$50 (£42) in each of the first 4 x Hot Spot Races (1 to 4). In the 5th Hot Spot Race US$70 (£58) from every entry will be added to the starting Prize Money of US$250 (£208) for the Country Challenge. All the Prize Money will be paid out to the first three Country Challenge entered pigeons in a ratio of 50%, 30% & 20%. The SAMDPR website will have an up to the date listing of which pigeons are entered and how much Prize Money will be flown for, plus and an ACE Pigeon Country Challenge which will be won on the FINAL RACE. There is an Entry Fee of US$120 (£100) per pigeon to enter these Country Challenge Competitions and this has to be paid for before the basketing for the 3rd Hot Spot Car Race. The COUNTRY CHALLENGE ACE PIGEON, all countries participating will be given a US$200 (£167) starting Prize Money and US$40 (£33) from each Country Challenge entry fee goes to the “WINNER TAKES ALL” cash prize, which will be awarded to the first Country Challenge pigeon which is clocked in THE SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON FINAL RACE. The pigeon that wins this award will be named the COUNTRY CHALLENGE ACE PIGEON. It should also be mentioned that during the 2016/17 race series the UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY CHALLENGE paid out £14,777 in PRIZE MONEY. Then in the “FINAL RACE” on the 1st February 2020 there are also 10 magnificent gold pendants to be won worth well over US$1,000 (£833) each and now over US$1.20 Million American Dollars in Prize Money (£1 Million Pounds) and 300 cash prizes being on offer. These estimations are done at US$1.20 to the Pound Sterling. This could of course change on the Final Race.
THE ZANDY MEYER MEMORIAL RACE & US$1,000 (approx. £833) NOMINATION will also take place on the “FINAL RACE” and the winning will be A BRAND NEW MERCEDES BENZ SLK 555 MOTOR CAR, worth a staggering US$85,000 (approx. £70,833). (ONLY “ACTIVATED” PIGEONS ARE ELIGIBLE TO COMPETE FOR ANY OF THESE SPECIAL CASH PRIZES OR AWARDS). This new competition was very well supported in its first year and had over 160 entries and was so successful that it also paid out a staggering 2nd prize of US$54,000 cash. Do not miss this fantastic opportunity to win a fabulous new car. The 19th SAMDPR attracted about 140 entries and two staggering prizes were once again won by two worthy winners. The 20th SAMDPR attracted over 100 entries and the US$85,000 (£68,000) was won by Lloyd & Kelly from the UK, who actually won 37th OPEN in the FINAL RACE. It was the first Activated pigeons and walked away with the top award. In The 21st SAMDPR Michael Mellor from Crewe was the runner-up for this prestigious award, with over 100 entries, which once again just goes to show that the UK pigeons will hold their own against the best pigeons in the world. In The 22nd SAMDPR, Karl Donnelly from Ireland won this fantastic prize, when his pigeon won 5th OPEN.
PRIZE MONEY ALLOCATED TO THE 24th SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR FINAL RACE, WILL NOW BE AS FOLLOWS:- 1st US$300,000 (approx. £250,000), 2nd US$150,000 (approx. £125,000), 3rd US$100,000 (approx. £83,333), 4th US$75,000 (approx. £62,500), 5th US$50,000 (approx. £41,667), 6th US$25,000 (£20,833), 7th US$20,000 (£16,667), 8th US$15,000 (£12,500), 9th US$12,500 (£10,417), 10th US$10,000 (approx. £8,333), 11th/15th US$7,500 (approx. £6,250) each, 16th/20th US$5,000 (approx. £4,167) each, 21st/25th US$4,000 (approx. £3,333) each, 26th/30th US$3,500 (approx. £2,917) each, 31st/40th US$3,000 (approx. £2,500) each, 41st/50th US$2,500 (£2,083) each, 51st/75th US$2,000 (£1,667) each, 76th/100th US$1,500 (£1,250) each, 101st/125th US$1,250 (£1,042) each, 126th/150th US$1,100 (£917) each, 151st/200th US41,000 (£833) each, 201st/250th US$750 (£625) each, then 251st/300th US$500 (£417) each. (Subject to terms and conditions of entry). The actual cash prizes stated above represent exchange rates (US$1.20 to the Pound Sterling) at the current time and may of course change at the time of each race depending what the currency exchange rate is on the actual race day. A total of US$1.30 Million American Dollars (£1.08 Million Pounds Sterling) Prize Money will be paid out in this FINAL RACE.
I would also just like to notify fanciers that my weekly “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE”, “NEWSLETTERS” and “UPDATES” can now also be seen on the following pigeon web sites:- www.regencylofts.com www.iprr.co.uk www.elimarpigeons.com www.pigeonportal.com www.pigeonglobe.co.uk www.cyberpigeon.co.uk www.pigeonbasics.com www.starpigeons.com www.pigeonpixels.co.uk www.theloftreport.com www.oneloftracing.com www.toppigeon.co.za www.ukpigeonracing.co.uk www.AvianExportServices.com www.pigeonnetwork.com plus of course they will also be published in the “BRITISH HOMING WORLD” and “THE RACING PIGEON” weeklies and many other international world pigeon publications for all to see, read and enjoy.
The race date for THE 25th SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE has already been provisionally agreed and confirmed by the race organisers as SATURDAY 30th FEBRUARY 2021. (However, this date is still awaiting final confirmation). This will be the 25th anniversary of this great race and it is sure to be a very special occasion with lots of interesting things going on to celebrate this outstanding achievement.
If you are interested in participating, helping us or acting a Country Race Team Co-ordinator or Shipper, then please telephone me as soon as possible on 01279-812005 or my mobile 07860-568216 or SMS or email on reglofts@aol.com and I will give you all the information you require. My two proposed shipping dates for THE 25th SAMDPR will take about the middle of MAY 2020 and then the second one should be around the middle of JUNE 2020. Of course these two dates will be confirmed nearer the time. I strongly recommend that you try to ship your race entries on the 1st shipping date as this then gives these pigeons much more time to settle into the race loft.
If you have any questions about any aspect of THE SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE, then please contact me as soon as possible on 01279-812005 or my mobile 07860-568216 or by SMS or email at reglofts@aol.com and I will do my best to answer any of your questions or queries about this great race.
These “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASES” do take a lot of my time to prepare and I try to get as much into them as possible as I know fanciers and entrants like to know what is happening, unfortunately some time, some information will not be to hand when the print deadline is reached so can’t be included in that report. I can only apologise if I leave something or somebody out but I can assure everybody that I do my best to get as much information as possible to put into each of these international reports and give as much credit to those that deserve it.
IF ANY PIGEON FANCIER IN THE UNITED KINGDOM OR IN FACT ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE MY WEEKLY “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASES”, “NEWSLETTERS” AND “UPDATES” BY EMAIL, THEN ALL THEY HAVE TO DO IS EMAIL ME THEIR ACTUAL EMAIL ADDRESS I WILL PUT THEM ON MY EMAIL DATABASE AND I WILL THEN FORWARD THEM ALL THE INFORMATION BY EMAIL ON A REGULAR BASIS.
BEST OF LUCK TO ALL THE PIGEON FANCIERS/ENTRANTS AND SYNDICATES WORLDWIDE DURING THE 2019/20 RACE SERIES.
If you wish to know any more information on this prestigious international pigeon race please contact me ASAP:-
Paul Smith, United Kingdom Race Team Co-ordinator/Shipper and International Race Co-ordinator for The 24th South African Million Dollar Pigeon Race, which is due to be held at Heron Banks Golf & River Estate and Emerald Resort, Casino & Hotel, South Africa on Saturday 1st February 2020. Regency Lofts Limited, 2, Highmead, off Coltsfield, Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex. CM24 8LJ. England. Tel/Fax:- 01279-812005. (Int. Code:- +44-1279-812005). Mobile:- 07860-568216. Email Address:- reglofts@aol.com Regency Lofts Website:- www.regencylofts.com Skype Address:- talbot7944 Twitter Address:- PaulSmith@SmithReglofts The South African Million Dollar Pigeon Race Website:- www.samdpr.com