Herbots | Eric Prinsen from Winterswijk achieves a class performance: 1-2-3 against 5,863 pigeons from Tienen

An impressive performance by one of the established names in the eastern Netherlands: Eric Prinsen from Winterswijk takes the entire top three in the race from Tienen against no fewer than 5,863 pigeons. A so-called one-two-three, confirming what experts have known for a long time: Eric is simply one of the absolute best.

From horses to feathers

Eric's passion for animals started at an early age. In his younger years, everything revolved around horses, but that changed when he married Ria in 1980. Her father, Gerrit Magis, was a passionate pigeon fancier and quickly infected Eric with the pigeon virus. In 1981, he started with a handful of pigeons and a loft made from fence boards and corrugated iron.

His first reinforcements came from Piet Steins and Bennie Ebbers, among others, who was causing a sensation at the time with his Meulemans pigeons. It soon became clear that Eric had a particularly good understanding of the game. What followed was an impressive career with dozens of championships and now this absolute top day in Tienen.

Strong stock

Eric built his colony with strong bloodlines such as Delbar, Huyskes-van Riel, Tournier and Meulemans. Over the years, valuable reinforcements were added from Dirk Van den Bulck, Luc Van Mechelen, Henri Vloemans, J&P van der Haar, Combinatie Ebben, Marcel Sangers, F&K Mariën and Wessel Regtop, among others.

Calm, regularity and results: Eric's system

Eric races 24 widowers in classic widowhood. Another 16 hens are kept in a separate section, also raced in classic widowhood. The partners therefore remain at home with the cocks and hens respectively. Eric swears by calm and regularity, and this is reflected in his entire system.

Although he was active in all disciplines for many years, he made a conscious decision to specialise in 2010. He gave up overnight long distance racing, mainly because of the intensive care required and the increased risk for yearlings. Since then, his focus has been entirely on sprint, middle distance and one-day long distance racing, with a clear preference for races with two nights in the basket. According to Eric, the pigeons are calmer at the release and recover more quickly.

After a short break in 2020 and 2021, Eric returned in 2022, and how:

From 2022 to 2024, he became General Champion in his local club.

The loft

Eric has everything well organised with two lofts on his property. They are built of sturdy brick and are 2.5 metres deep, spacious enough to comfortably house his pigeons. A striking detail: the front façade is made of wood, which gives it a warm appearance and creates a pleasant climate inside. A well-thought-out combination of solidity and functionality!

Medical care and nutrition

In the spring, the pigeons are treated with a yellow cure. This is followed by the mandatory paramyxo-rota vaccination. In the autumn, the paratyphoid cure in the water is also on the programme. This year, for the first time, the young birds were vaccinated twice with paramyxo-rota. Eric says that the young birds are in much better health thanks to the double rota vaccination. Later, the young birds were also treated against smallpox.

During the flying season, the pigeons are disinfected with BS or products from Vincent Schroeder after returning home.

During moulting, rest is key: the pigeons are hardly ever let out, as this benefits the moulting process.

When it comes to nutrition, Eric has sworn by the Aidi system for years, a well-thought-out and reliable approach that pays off.

Results 2025

Tienen 178 km

local 182 pigeons: 1-2-3-4-6-8-9-10-11 16/22
Circle six 1242 pigeons: 1-2-3-6-10-25-27-28-29-67-68-83-85-86 18/22
Division nine 5863 pigeons: 1-2-3-6-13-33-35-36-38-138-140-179-184-189 18/22

Dizy Le Gros 324 km