Herbots | Wonderful championship party at the Belgian Entente!

It was a blast on Sunday, December 14th, at the annual championship celebration of the Belgian Entente. The Salons Cortina in Wevelgem was packed with 420 attendees, and a proud chairman, Filip Norman, and his board members welcomed the international crowd. As the largest organizer of national and international competitions, the Belgian Entente is a monument in international pigeon racing. To reach the podium here as a winner is to score in the Champions League of pigeon racing. "Headwind, tailwind, sun or rain...you'll encounter the Belgian Entente throughout the season"...we could easily use as a slogan. The winners of the various classifications and national winners are therefore quite proud to add these achievements to their resume. Due to a reshuffle in the 2025 season, the Entente was the organizer of races in the one-day and extreme long distance. It's also a celebration where everyone can meet everyone. Across national borders, contacts are made, discussions are caught up, and further arrangements are made, all adding up to a rich and satisfying experience.
In his welcome, Chairman Filip Norman emphatically thanked his board and all the helping hands who ensure the races run as smoothly as possible. Looking back on the 2025 season, he learned that it was a hard, challenging, yet fair season, with the truly top pigeons coming out on top. The pigeon releases (and Filip Norman now has around 400 race releases to his credit) are still carried out with the utmost care and attention to the pigeons. Weather conditions also change, demanding a great deal of flexibility and skill from those responsible. The Chairman maintains his credo that the care of the pigeons comes first. He also welcomed the top of the KBDB board, with chairman Johan De Schouwer and chairman of the sports committee Dany Vandenberghe, and called on them to help steer pigeon racing through these turns with seriousness, thoughtfulness and strong consultation with the organizers and safeguard a bright future. As usual, the Salons Cortina team organized the festive event for this large group of attendees very well and smoothly. It was no easy task to provide 420 people with a delicious and pleasant afternoon between the award ceremonies. Secretary Yvan Eeckhout, in his signature decisive style, led the various winners to the podium, and in passing, he also lamented that several winners of otherwise very good rankings were absent or had made little effort to be there. Standing here on the podium should make any player beam with joy…

Youri Deblanc (Ronse) takes home the title of General Champion B.V. 2025!
It was a proud Youri Deblanc and his wife who walked away with this honor for the past season. A difficult and tough season, peppered with many challenges. He couldn't do this without the support of his family, his dedicated caretakers, and many others around him, which he gladly expresses his gratitude to. Winning here still gives me goosebumps. With great bravado, the national and international winners were hoisted onto the podium, and as the national anthems played, tears were still shed here and there. Bringing out the deepest emotions in people... isn't that the most beautiful thing about pigeon racing?

Congratulations to the board of the Belgian Entente, congratulations to all the laureates, and see you next year, from the Herbots team!

Geert Dhaenens

Algemeen Kampioen Youri Deblanc en echtgenote Sofie