Gertjan Rigter: The Barcelona specialist with top references

13 Feb 2026

57-year-old Gertjan Rigter from Amstelveen combines his job as a sales manager with a deep-rooted love for animals. From an early age, he grew up surrounded by chickens, pheasants, and rabbits. His first “pigeon experience” began with three lovebirds in a parrot cage—seemingly modest, but ultimately decisive. It was his uncle, Henk Bartels, who suggested building an outdoor loft. It didn't stop at a simple shelter: in 1981, a fully-fledged 5 by 2 meter pigeon loft was built. Because Henk himself had played with carrier pigeons in the past, the switch to real racing pigeons was obvious. Through his contacts, the first pigeons came from Gebr. Franken, while his grandmother bought additional reinforcements from B. Peereboom. This laid the foundation for a serious pigeon racing career. During his student years, the sport took a back seat for a while, but the fire remained lit. During that period, Gertjan raced together with his stepfather Jan Copier from his parents' home. That combination resulted in several championships and, above all, a lot of sporting fun. The mutual competition and the pursuit of constant improvement remain the core of his motivation to this day.

The foundations of a marathon colony

For years, Gertjan has focused independently on the tough marathon and ZLU races. His colony is based on a carefully built stock, with pigeons from Gebr. Jacobs and the Volkens line via Hennie de Vries as its pillars. The absolute foundation of the loft is formed by two stock cocks from the Jacobs brothers: two brothers from the legendary “Mont Ventoux” line. A significant portion of his current top pigeons carry the blood of these two brothers directly — a genetic backbone that continues to prove itself in the toughest international competitions.

The beginning of success

The success story began about twelve years ago, when Gertjan Rigter purchased youngsters from two absolute top pigeons from the Jacobs brothers: the “Super Barca 621” and the “Mont Ventoux”.

The Super Barca 621 was a true champion in the ZLU races and achieved, among other things:

1st National Ace Pigeon Perpignan (3 years ZLU),
9th National Perpignan,
15th National Barcelona.

He later became a legendary stock pigeon for the Jacobs brothers. The Mont Ventoux also became an icon in breeding, and two direct sons: ‘Son Mont Ventoux 606’ and ‘Son Mont Ventoux 90’, now form the fundamental basis of this phenomenal marathon loft.

The power of top bloodlines

The Super Barca 621 is a direct son of the famous Betuwe pair, a breeding pair whose offspring achieved unrivalled results, including:

1st International Pau 2020
1st International Narbonne 2015
1st National Narbonne 2017
1st National Bergerac Sector 2 2013
2nd International Perpignan 2016
2nd National Barcelona 2018
2nd National Agen ZLU 2018
2nd National Pau 2020
2nd National Bergerac 2013
2nd National Bordeaux Sector 2
3rd National Agen ZLU 2015
3rd National Bergerac Sector 2 2013
4th National Barcelona 2022
4th National Pau 2015
4th National Perpignan 2015
4th National (6th International) Barcelona 2015
4th National Cahors 2010
5th National Marseille 2019
5th National St. Vincent ZLU 2019
6th National St. Vincent 2012

Mont Ventoux also produced exceptional offspring, with victories including:

1st National Narbonne
1st National Cahors
2nd National Barcelona
4th International Barcelona

Top references:

1st National Rouen '21 by Claus Jensen (Denmark), grandson of Mont Ventoux 606
2nd National Dax by Terpstra: from grandchild Mont Ventoux 90
16th National Agen by Terpstra: from sister Riet, winner of the 2nd National Barcelona
21st National Kelme 14,184 pigeons at Dorneanu in Romania: 50% Gertjan Rigter !! (mother is direct Rigter)
23 National Barcelona '22 at Comb. Hommes & Zn. 50% Gertjan Rigter !! (father is direct Rigter)
50 National Barcelona '22 at Pieter Goeree: 100% Gertjan Rigter !! (via Terpstra-Koper)
In Romania. Flown as yearlings in their first year at this loft:
2nd Ace Pigeon Marathon yearlings (3 races) Botosani: 26th Provincial Ace Pigeon Marathon – 42nd National Ace Pigeon Marathon Romania
2nd Ace Pigeon Marathon yearlings (2 flights) Botosani: 23rd Provincial Ace Pigeon Marathon – 45th National Ace Pigeon Marathon Romania
20th National Kaunas (901 km) 2,320 pigeons
50th National Javona (889 km) 5,800 pigeons
79th National Madona (1,115 km) 2,147 pigeons

The season

At the start of the season, Gertjan begins with approximately 140 racing pigeons, including yearlings. He has 16 breeding pairs at home; the remaining 100 breeding pigeons are housed at the home of his good friend Hennie de Vries. All pigeons were paired on April 21. The yearlings participate from the first race, even if they have not been raced as young birds. After three to four one-day long distance races of around 600 kilometers, Gertjan considers them sufficiently trained for that season. The old birds completed a training program of 173, 226, 331, 255, and 408 kilometers beforehand. Between the marathon races, they are no longer basketed and are not lapped. As Gertjan himself says: “My pigeons like to train for over an hour in the afternoon, and they do so entirely of their own accord.”

Care

Gertjan feeds his pigeons with mixtures from Voetens. During the season, he alternates between the racing mixture and the Wal Zoontjes mixture. For some extra energy, he adds Energie Plus from Versele-Laga and candy seeds from Van Tilburg. In the days before basketing, he places a jar of candy seeds and a high-fat mixture next to the breeding pan. At the start of the season, the pigeons also received roasted peanuts and Tovo, but when the supply ran out, he stopped giving them these. After the race, they receive Probac for a faster recovery and a TKK pill for disinfection. Gertjan maintains a strict schedule when it comes to health. In January, the pigeons are vaccinated against paratyphoid, followed by a course of treatment. In February, they receive the paramyxovirus vaccination and are deloused. In March, he may give them a yellow cure, but only if it is really necessary. Three to four times a year, he has his pigeons checked by veterinarian Stefan Göbel, especially in the run-up to and during the most important flights. On his advice, he only administers medication when necessary.

Top performers in the Extreme Marathon!

With pigeons such as “Luna” and “Joep”, exceptional performances have been achieved in recent seasons.

“Luna” became 1st International Ace Pigeon Perpignan 2023–2024.
“Joep” finished as 2nd International Ace Pigeon Extreme Marathon Flights in the PiPa ranking 2024.

Impressive national top rankings

Rigter's pigeons have excelled time and again in the national results in recent years:

Barcelona ZLU: 2, 4, 22, 62
Agen/Bordeaux ZLU: 2, 12, 13, 16, 23, 31, 35, 38, 55, 61, 96, 99
Dax: 2
Montpellier NPO: 3
Perpignan ZLU: 7, 8, 10, 11, 24, 48, 51, 84
Pau ZLU: 11, 17, 39, 51, 63, 73, 101
Bergerac NPO: 11, 13
Cahors NPO: 11, 13
Tarbes: 14
Narbonne ZLU: 24, 37, 60, 62
Sint Vincent ZLU: 29, 47, 51, 58
Marseille ZLU: 40, 41, 46, 66

Barcelona results over the years

The performances at Barcelona really show the consistent class of Rigter's colony:

2017: 116, 171, 321, 712, 767 (7/8 prizes)
2018: 2 (‘Riet’), 207, 749, 773, 830 (7/17 prizes)
2019: 161, 360, 522, 899 (6/14 prizes)
2020: 203, 250, 366, 381, 412, 425, 658, 692, 974 (10/12 prizes)
2021: 62, 78, 106, 127, 445, 620, 642, 733 (10/17 prizes)
2022: 4th (“Jannie”), also 6th International from 6,168 and 12th International from 16,832 pigeons
2023: 93, 150, 237, 297, 302, 374, 423, 565, 637, 795, 800, 814, 896, 973, 1143, 1151 (18/31 prizes)
2024: 22 (“Joep”), 382, 534, 568, 683, 725, 855, 868, 898, 899, 1088, 1223 (20/34 prizes)

Some other highlights from previous years:

1st National Super Prestige Cup ZLU
1st Provincial Emperor of the “Fondclub Noord-Holland”
1st Interprovincial Emperor of the “Fondunie 2000” (all ZLU marathon fanciers from NPO departments 6 to 11)
2nd “Cup of Flanders International Barcelona” – championship with the first 10 nominated pigeons at International Barcelona '20 !!
2nd Western European Olympiad Marathon ZLU (first 8 nominated pigeons)
2nd National ZLU (Long Distance Champion) Marathon Champion
2nd National Pyrenees Cup ZLU
3rd Western European Olympiad Marathon ZLU
3rd National Marathon ZLU Champion
3rd Interprovincial Emperor all ZLU flights SNZH (North Holland & South Holland)
3rd Interprovincial ZLU Emperor Long Distance Union 2000
3rd National Emperor Long Distance ZLU
3rd IATP (all international flights PiPa ranking)