crown

Subscribe Now

FOLLOW US

Sign in

Photos: The Belgian breeder with the million-euro pigeon

Armando the pigeon won worldwide headlines and netted Belgian pigeon breeder Joel Verschoot 1.25-million euros ($1.4-million) when he won over Chinese buyers in an online auction in March this year, becoming the world's most expensive racing bird. Now the famous bird toils for a Beijing public works magnate, fathering what his new owner must hope will be a new generation of feathered champions. The Chinese buyer is thought to have kept Armando in a training loft in Belgium, the equivalent of the stud at a thoroughbred racing stable and Verschoot hopes his offspring will raise the stakes even higher.

Updated on: Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM IST

Share via

Copy link

1/8

Pigeon-enthusiast Joël Verschoot inspects a racing pigeon at the "Verschoot Pigeons Loft" in Ingelmunster, Belgium. The Belgian pigeon breeder could probably have settled down to a comfortable retirement in March after he sold the world’s most expensive racer. But 64-year-old retired abattoir worker Verschoot is not done yet. He still consecrates up to 10 hours a day tending for and racing his charges. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

Pigeon-enthusiast Joël Verschoot inspects a racing pigeon at the "Verschoot Pigeons Loft" in Ingelmunster, Belgium. The Belgian pigeon breeder could probably have settled down to a comfortable retirement in March after he sold the world’s most expensive racer. But 64-year-old retired abattoir worker Verschoot is not done yet. He still consecrates up to 10 hours a day tending for and racing his charges. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

2/8

A racing pigeon at the Verschoot Pigeons Loft. Armando the pigeon won worldwide headlines and netted Verschoot 1.25-million euros ($1.4-million) when he won over Chinese buyers in an online auction. Now the famous bird toils for a Beijing public works magnate, fathering what his new owner must hope will be a new generation of feathered champions. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

A racing pigeon at the Verschoot Pigeons Loft. Armando the pigeon won worldwide headlines and netted Verschoot 1.25-million euros ($1.4-million) when he won over Chinese buyers in an online auction. Now the famous bird toils for a Beijing public works magnate, fathering what his new owner must hope will be a new generation of feathered champions. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

3/8

Racing pigeons at the Verschoot Pigeons Loft. Before Armando set the online pigeon auction world alight earlier this year, the Flemish fancier’s most expensive protegee was 400,000-euro Nadine. Now Verschoot wants to better his record. He has hidden away two of Armando’s heirs -- “a son and a daughter” -- in the hope they mate and raise a brood. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

Racing pigeons at the Verschoot Pigeons Loft. Before Armando set the online pigeon auction world alight earlier this year, the Flemish fancier’s most expensive protegee was 400,000-euro Nadine. Now Verschoot wants to better his record. He has hidden away two of Armando’s heirs -- “a son and a daughter” -- in the hope they mate and raise a brood. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

4/8

A racing pigeon takes off. In Ingelmunster, a small town near Kortrijk in West Flanders, Verschoot still remembers the “incredible” record-setting auction. When Armando’s sale came up, two Chinese buyers went head to head, raising each other by 100,000 euros a time until one was forced to retire. “We never thought it could go up like that,” he told AFP, recalling how his father introduced him to pigeon fancying at a young age. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

A racing pigeon takes off. In Ingelmunster, a small town near Kortrijk in West Flanders, Verschoot still remembers the “incredible” record-setting auction. When Armando’s sale came up, two Chinese buyers went head to head, raising each other by 100,000 euros a time until one was forced to retire. “We never thought it could go up like that,” he told AFP, recalling how his father introduced him to pigeon fancying at a young age. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

5/8

Joel was the only one of the elder Verschoot’s nine children to take an interest in training his father’s 50-strong racing flock. Now he has 300 birds of his own, and fame in the sport. Since retiring from the abattoir in 2015, Verschoot has turned a hobby into an international business, fuelled by the rise of Chinese interest. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

Joel was the only one of the elder Verschoot’s nine children to take an interest in training his father’s 50-strong racing flock. Now he has 300 birds of his own, and fame in the sport. Since retiring from the abattoir in 2015, Verschoot has turned a hobby into an international business, fuelled by the rise of Chinese interest. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

6/8

Verschoot’s -- and later Armando’s -- reputation was built in middle-distance races of 500 to 700 kilometres. As a trainer, he explains, his speciality was keeping apart male and female pairs for two weeks before the day-long race. The lovesick birds, he reckons, are all the more determined to return to each others’ bosom at speeds of up to 80 kph after this enforced celibacy. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

Verschoot’s -- and later Armando’s -- reputation was built in middle-distance races of 500 to 700 kilometres. As a trainer, he explains, his speciality was keeping apart male and female pairs for two weeks before the day-long race. The lovesick birds, he reckons, are all the more determined to return to each others’ bosom at speeds of up to 80 kph after this enforced celibacy. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

7/8

“Quick, quick, quick, back to the house and the women!” he chants. Armando was not merely randy, however, he was also “crafty”, his trainer explains: expert at dodging power cables and airborne predators. At the start of this year things got serious at the race in Poznan, Poland, that acts as a kind of pigeon Champions League for the best birds in Europe. He won. And now his DNA is much sought after. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

“Quick, quick, quick, back to the house and the women!” he chants. Armando was not merely randy, however, he was also “crafty”, his trainer explains: expert at dodging power cables and airborne predators. At the start of this year things got serious at the race in Poznan, Poland, that acts as a kind of pigeon Champions League for the best birds in Europe. He won. And now his DNA is much sought after. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

8/8

The Chinese buyer is thought to have kept Armando in a training loft in Belgium, the equivalent of the stud at a racing stable. “Soon Armando will have grandchildren which will go on the market, for more and more,” Verschoot beams. Some purists are less excited by the arrival of big money. Maybe Belgium’s pigeon racing has room for a variety of approaches; after all as many as 20,000 Belgians are licensed breeders. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Published on Sep 10, 2019 10:13 AM

The Chinese buyer is thought to have kept Armando in a training loft in Belgium, the equivalent of the stud at a racing stable. “Soon Armando will have grandchildren which will go on the market, for more and more,” Verschoot beams. Some purists are less excited by the arrival of big money. Maybe Belgium’s pigeon racing has room for a variety of approaches; after all as many as 20,000 Belgians are licensed breeders. (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Related Photos

Home/Photos/News/Photos: The Belgian Breeder With The Million-euro Pigeon

© 2026 HindustanTimes