Pierre Wittenberg: Two Years in a Row National Marathon Champion Unassigned and outstanding at Barcelona 2025!

Pierre Wittenberg, a passionate marathon player with an impressive track record, lives in Herpen, Brabant.  In both 2023 and 2024, Pierre won the title of National Champion Unassigned Marathon, an exceptional achievement that few can match.

Herpen, a village with less than 3,000 inhabitants east of Oss, is thus the home of the best unassigned marathon player in the Netherlands in 2024. In the same year, Pierre also finished second in the designated marathon championship, while his top pigeon NL21-4003474 took 22nd place in the national ace pigeon marathon ranking.

The national victories at Bergerac sector 1 in 2018 and 2020 paved the way for a period of continuous success. The crowning glory of his work followed with the national title in 2023 and, to his own surprise, he managed to repeat this in 2024.

Pierre maintains a strict selection process and deliberately works with a limited number of pigeons. ‘After my national title in 2023, I thought it couldn't get any better and expected a quieter season,’ he says. "My goal was really just to become champion at the Fondvrienden Brabant-Limburg, where the top five nominated pigeons per flight count. I hadn't managed to do that in 2023."

However, things turned out differently. From the first race from Bergerac, the pigeons were in good form and as the season progressed, it became increasingly exciting. The nest pigeons in particular performed excellently, with almost all of them winning three prizes from three basketing. Becoming national champion two years in a row is no coincidence, but the result of a year of consistent form and top performances. In the marathon, which takes place over a short period of time, there is simply no room for error.

In 2024, Pierre raced with only 34 marathon pigeons and won 29 prizes, good for a prize percentage of 85%. Per ten pigeons, this amounts to an impressive 47%.

Barcelona 2025

This year, Pierre basketed three pigeons for Barcelona 1146 km. His second nominated, NL22-4013265, arrived first at 10:43:53 and achieved an impressive 9th national place against 4,515 pigeons, with a speed of 930.57 m/min. Not much later, at 11:46:02, his first nominated pigeon, NL20-4097969, followed, good for 51th place nationally. The third pigeon, NL21-4002640, arrived at 14:30:37 and ranked 362th nationally.

An impressive result that once again underlines how strong Pierre's colony is. These pigeons were basketed on total widowhood. After Saint Vincent, all nests were removed. This proves once again that Pierre's pigeons fly well on nest and in widowhood. In the division 3 against 348 pigeons, Pierre occupied the 1-3-27 places in Barcelona. 

Other results in 2025:

Saint-Vincent 1040 km:

• Division 3 against 1158 pigeons: 2-10-32-91 etc. 6 prizes out of 7
• National sector 1B against 2244 pigeons: 3-14-53-156 etc. 6 prizes out of 7
• National against 10,263 pigeons: 29-126-375-794 etc. 6 prizes out of 7

Bergerac 858 km:

• Division 3 against 1,887 pigeons: 2-72-96 etc. 7 prizes out of 11
• National sector 1B against 4486 pigeons: 19-170-213-390 etc. 7 prizes out of 11

A game played with conviction

Pierre Wittenberg played the nest game in 2024 and he does so with conviction. His colony consists of about 72 pigeons, of which he actively uses 18 pairs for the races. In 2024, he started the season with 16 old birds and 20 yearlings, with which he participated in nine marathon races: six with afternoon release and three with morning release.

‘The season started well, but it only got better,’ says Pierre. ‘The pigeons came back earlier and earlier. At one point, I really saw that I was in a good position. But then to win the national title... that's almost unbelievable. And then to also become second designated champion, it was just a great year.’

The strength of the nest cock

According to Pierre, the key to his success lies mainly with the nest cock. ‘Because I race from the nest, I focus on pairs with young birds that are about ten days old. Sometimes I also race from eggs, but mostly from young birds. Of the nine pigeons that flew three out of three, seven were cocks. So they really played an important role in the championship.’

Pierre suspects that the cocks in his loft are stronger than the hens. ‘I always end up with more good cocks. Maybe it has something to do with colour: I have a lot of red pigeons and I think they produce cocks more often. But to be honest, the quality on the hen side is simply lower. It's frustrating, but as long as it works, it works.’

The 2024 season: a tight system, strong results

The season started with 8 breeding pairs and 18 racing pairs, including 20 yearlings. During the widowhood training, the cocks train twice a day (morning and evening), while the hens train once (in the evening). Once the season really gets underway and the pigeons are nesting, the cocks train in the morning and the hens in the afternoon.

Between two marathon flights, the pigeons are regularly raced to around 30 kilometres. Pierre does not attach much importance to the distance, but rather to stimulating the pigeons' urge to fly and their motivation to return to the loft.

For the first Bergerac, the pigeons are basketed in their nesting position and Pierre continues to race them from the nest for the rest of the season. To control moulting, he pulls the second and third flight feathers of all pigeons at the beginning of February. As a result, most pigeons still have a full wing until the second Bergerac and Perpignan. Pierre has been using this method for years without any problems. After the season, the rest of the full moulting process follows.

National honours

• 1st National Marathon Champion Unassigned Netherlands 2024
• 2nd National Marathon Champion Assigned Netherlands 2024
• 1st National Marathon Champion Unassigned Netherlands 2023
• 5th National Champion Marathon Nominated Netherlands 2023
• 10th International Heavy Long Distance Competition ‘De Duif’ 2024

Fondvrienden Brabant-Limburg 2024

• 1st Ace Pigeon Afternoon Release
• 1st Loft Champion Afternoon Release
• 1st Loft Champion Morning Release
• 1st Champion First Signed
• 1st Marathon Champion

Fondvrienden Brabant-Limburg 2023

• 2nd Ace Pigeon Morning Release
• 3rd Marathon Champion

Other highlights

Pierre won 1st National Bergerac Sector 1 in 2018 and 2020. In 2020, he even became 2nd national in the whole of the Netherlands against 8,450 pigeons.

Recent top results:

2022

• 58th Nat. Tarbes (2,987 p)

2023

• 44th Nat. Tarbes (3,603 p)
• 81st and 99th Nat. Bergerac (9,863 p)

2024

• 40th Nat. St. Vincent (3,809 p)
• 41st Nat. Bordeaux (7,819 p)
• 20th Nat. Tarbes (3,562 p)
• 17th and 77th Nat. Bergerac (9,381 p)

Mister Piet as the progenitor of the colony

The foundation of the current marathon colony was laid with pigeons from renowned fanciers such as Bart Giebels, Peter van den Eijnden, Nico van de Hurk (Arjan Beens line), Jan van Hooft, Winnie van Oijen, Jeroen van Heumen and Piet Arts. The name Van den Eijnden in particular will still ring a bell with older fanciers. In the 1980s, he was among the absolute best, and his pigeons formed the foundation of successful lofts such as A.P. Overwater and Verhagen-Van de Steen.

However, it is mainly one pigeon that currently leaves its mark on the colony: “Mister Piet” (NL15-1854442), a grey cock from Lambert Snoeks. His father, NL09-533, was a grey pigeon that finished 18th Ace Pigeon ZLU Agen in the years 2013-2015. Pierre has a soft spot for unusual colours and asked Lambert to breed a blue pigeon from this line especially for him. As a tribute to his late father-in-law Piet Verstraaten, the young cock was named ‘Mister Piet.’

Because he was a late youngster in 2015, he was used in both afternoon releases and ZLU flights from 2017 onwards. He never missed and delivered an impressive 8 out of 8. Highlight: 1st national Bergerac sector 1 and 2nd national Bergerac whole of the Netherlands.

An overview of his achievements:

2017

• Agen ZLU: 1218/6228
• Bergerac Dept. 3: 128/1708

2018

• Bordeaux sector 1: 112/9852
• Bergerac sector 1: 160/6094

2019

• Pau ZLU: 226/3785
• Narbonne ZLU: 486/3829

2020

• St. Vincent sector 1: 213/5578
• Bergerac sector 1: 1/4194

The father of “Mister Piet” (NL09-553) was bred from a grey dove from Jos Thoné x “93-duif” from Gebr. Van Santvoort (23rd nat. Soustons), daughter of “Jonge Baron” x “Vervuurtje.”

The mother, NL12-775, descends from NL08-196 from Jan van Engelen (Vanbruane x Van Engelen line) x ‘06-697’ from Gebr. Van Santvoort.

The current top performer: NL21-4003474

At the moment, another pigeon is stealing the show: NL21-4003474, a red-crested cock.

He performed excellently in 2023, 2024 and 2025 in heavy long-distance races:

• Bordeaux: 11/2419
• Tarbes: 19/939
• Bergerac: 19/9381
• Bressols: 177/5695
• St. Vincent: 40/3809
• Issoudun: 307/2765
• Châteauroux: 708/4128
• Sint-Vincent: 29/10263

This top performer is a son of NL20-1617591 (grey), a late youngster from 2020 out of Mister Piet x NL19-4074148 “Rood Kras”, daughter of “Rode 911” (NL12/911) x “Kras 945” (NL14/945).

The mother of the 474 is NL18-1285482 ‘Roodkras 482’, an excellent breeding hen from ‘Klz Dax’ (NL12/883) from Toon van Loon x ‘Roodkras 682’ (NL17/682), originating from a cross between Jan van Roij x ‘Dochter Stien’ from Jos Pepping.

The loft

The wooden garden loft, 12 metres long and covered with roof tiles, consists of no fewer than nine sections. There is one section for the breeders, one for the racing hens and one for the hens that stay at home. In addition, there are three sections, each with eight boxes for the widowers and nesting pigeons. There are two separate sections for the young birds and a small extra section for some of the breeding pigeons.

All sections are deliberately spacious, because Pierre attaches great importance to sufficient space for his pigeons. The loft faces south-east and has a one-metre ventilation strip of mesh along its entire length, which ensures constant fresh air circulation.

At the start of the season, during the widowhood training, the windows of the old birds are covered with curtains. This prevents the pigeons from seeing each other and helps them maintain their focus.

Feeding, By-products & Medical Policy

During the breeding period, Pierre feeds his pigeons with Ronny van Tilburg's (Jovati) breeding mix. During the racing season, he combines racing mixes from three different brands, which can vary per season. Two days before basketing, this base is enriched with a high-fat mixture of eleven different seeds, composed by Van de Heuvel from Zeeland. Pierre adds extra hemp seeds to this.

The pigeons are fed “full feed” every day, but everything must be eaten. The young pigeons are fed a young pigeon mix from Paloma.

In terms of supplements, Pierre regularly adds Naturaline to the drinking water. On Wednesdays, the pigeons are given a mixture of apple cider vinegar, garlic and brewer's yeast. Electrolytes are provided as standard after each flight. In addition, fresh grit, red stone and candy seeds are always available.

When it comes to medical care, Pierre relies on the products of veterinarian Patrick Derycke from Terneuzen. During the marathon season, which lasts about six weeks, the pigeons are regularly treated for respiratory problems and trichomonas. Among other things, WN and BS from De Weerd are used for this. Outside the marathon season, pigeons are strictly selected on the basis of natural health. At the end of the season, they undergo a course of treatment with Para-Therapy from Giantel against paratyphoid. Pierre deliberately does not vaccinate against paratyphoid.

The ideal long-distance pigeon according to Pierre

When Pierre assesses a pigeon, he knows exactly what to look for.

‘A good pigeon should feel like a whole, not separate parts.’ The wing must be powerful, with tension and stretch. Muscle strength in the wing is an absolute requirement for me."

According to Pierre, the feather structure is also crucial for long-distance pigeons:

"Soft feathers are typical of good long-distance pigeons, and I see that a lot in my reds and greys. But the quality varies greatly. For example, I have a sister of a top pigeon, but that pigeon just doesn't have it: her wing hangs down, her tail shoots up, no strength, no balance. Still, I keep her for breeding because I don't have enough good hens. But the basket? She's definitely not going in there."

Champion with more awareness

In 2023, the national title still came as a surprise. "At the time, I didn't really have a good idea of how the scoring system worked. In 2024, it was different; I kept a close eye on the standings and the rankings. That makes it more exciting; you experience the championship in a completely different way. The national champion of 2023 and 2024 is once again performing impressively this season. In the provisional standings, he is already in first place in the Netherlands in the marathon.

On to the hattrick, Pierre: three times National Champion would be fantastic!

Congratulations from the entire Herbots team!

Christophe Mathues