Display of power amongst the National KBDB Ace Pigeons and Championships
After the super season that Tom and Marnik had, it was no surprise when the National KBDB championship titles were announced to find out that the father-son combination dominated this competition. Not often was one loft so successful. With this amount of quality on the lofts, they are all set for the coming seasons. See their titles below, they speak for themselves:
1st National Ace Pigeon Middle Distance Old birds KBDB 2023
1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance Old birds KBDB 2023
3rd National Ace Pigeon Allround Old birds & Yearlings KBDB 2023
4th National Ace Pigeon Allround Old birds & Yearlings KBDB 2023
4th National Ace Pigeon Long Distance Yearlings KBDB 2023
5th National Ace Pigeon Long Distance Old birds KBDB 2023
7th National Ace Pigeon Allround Old birds & Yearlings KBDB 2023
9th National Ace Pigeon Allround Old birds & Yearlings KBDB 2023
9th National Ace Pigeon Extreme Long Distance Old birds KBDB 2023
11th National Ace Pigeon Long Distance Old birds KBDB 2023
21st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance Old birds KBDB 2023
25th National Ace Pigeon Allround Old birds & Yearlings KBDB 2023
The name Van Gaver was not only found amongst the Ace Pigeons but also in other competitions they were amongst the absolute best:
7th National Champion Long Distance Old birds KBDB 2023
13th National Champion Long Distance Yearlings KBDB 2023
21st National General Champion KBDB 2023
Moreover, a staggering 57(!) Top 100 National prizes were won past season, including 5 Zonal and 6 Provincial victories. Besides the titles at the Belgian Championships and national races, they also won other renowned competitions:
1st General Champion Entente Belge
1st General Champion KBDB East Flanders (with a record number of classifications)
1st Provincial Ace Pigeon Middle Distance Old birds East Flanders
1° Provincial Ace Pigeon Long Distance Old birds East Flanders
1° Provincial Ace Pigeon Allround Old birds East Flanders
1° General Champion FVOV-OVV
1° General Champion FCD (Fondclub Denderstreek: 5 Clubs)
An abundance of absolute cracks
Below are several of the eye-catchers from 2023 on the lofts of Van Gaver. It is unbelievable how many stars are housed on a single accommodation...
Sabine I (NL20-1525613): 1st National Ace Pigeon Middle Distance. A Direct W&B De Kruijf from the Dutch town Woerden descending for a full 100% from the best of the world-famous Leo Heremans. To secure the title of Middle Distance Ace Pigeon, a racer has to have something special. Apparantly, no problem for Sabine I. She flew an amazing season in 2023 with several first prizes against a large number of pigeons and thereby was rightfully crowned best pigeon of the country on the middle distance. Moreover, this phenomenon already proved capable of passing on her winning genes as she is mother of 2nd Zone Argenton!
New Tetske (BE21-4201732): 1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance and 9th National Ace Pigeon Allround. After New Tetske won 3rd National La Souterraine in 2022, she continued where she left off and did even better in 2023 by winning 1st Prov. and 2nd Nat. Limoges, 10th Nat. Libourne, 3rd Zone Aurillac, etc. She is thereby also found at the top of the charts of various PIPA Rankings. New Tetske is a full sister of top hen Tetske and thus a daughter from the wonder pair, Tetske Pair. A pigeon which manages to rank amongst the best in two different KBDB Ace Pigeon competitions is one of the best pigeon of the country in years. Moreover, she is a candidate for a podium spot at the upcoming Olympiad. She also has a talent for breeding as she is already mother of 5th Provincial Ace Pigeon Allround Yearlings 2023 with a/o 14th Zone Bourges, 20th Zone Tulle, 45th Zone Souillac, 56th Prov. Orleans, 61st Nat. Argenton, all against thousands of pigeons.
Jamie (BE21-4201779): 3rd National Ace Pigeon Allround and 5th National Ace Pigeon Long Distance. This crack won 10x National Top 65! Another typical Van Gaver crack: thanks to the born class she is working on a highly impressive results list. Last year she was already the Provincial winner on Tulle (4th National) and her highlights past season were, 11th Nat. Libourne, 13th Nat. Bourges, 63rd Nat. Aurillac and 6th Zone Tulle. As a descendant of the Finn Pair, her talent is no surprise. Her top results led to two super classifications amongst the best ace pigeons in Belgium. Jamie is also a candidate for a podium spot at the upcoming Olympiad. Names such as Bart Geerinckx (Gladiator-Queen James) and Frederik Everaert are found in her pedigree.
Finn's Queen (BE21-4201816): 4th National Ace Pigeon Allround. Is a granddaughter of Finn crossed with a son Queen James from Bart Geerinckx. A combination between the Finn bloodlines and the best of Bart Geerinckx. Finn's Queen had a sensational 2023 season with a/o 1st Zone and 3rd National Libourne, 2nd Zone Aurillac, 68th Nat. Bourges against more than 21,000 p., 150th Nat. Argenton, etc. She too won a spot amongst the Top 5 National KBDB Ace Pigeon 2023. Together with several loft mates she was one of the absolute stars of the Van Gaver colony past season.
Ricky's Torres (BE22-4055088) : 4th National Ace Pigeon Long Distance. Another hen which was always there when she needed to be. With a significant amount of Davy Tournelle and Rik Cools in her pedigree Ricky's Torres did not disappoint in 2023 with a/o 23rd National (1st Prov. and 1st Zone) Limoges, 3rd Zone Aurillac and 21st Nat. Libourne. As a youngster she was raced by family friend Jorik Mertens from Gijzenzele (+/- 3km in a direct line) where she won a/o 1st Club and 14th Provincial Montoire. As a yearling she was moved to the lofts in Moortsele where she achieved further sensational results.
Suprême Finn (BE21-4201705): 7th National Ace Pigeon Allround. The series of super pigeons from the Van Gaver colony seems never ending when taking a closer look. This Suprême Finn (1st Provincial Ace Pigeon East Flanders) showed possess great athletic abilities. An allround top athlete which won a/o 21st Nat. Bourges, 41st Nat. Limoges, 8th Zone Souillac, etc. in 2023. She also made her mark during this exceptional season of Tom and Marnik. Moreover, she has a phenomenal pedigree: her father is superstar Finn and her mother comes directly from the lofts of Adrien Mirabelle (son Fast Boy & Miss Argenton Geerinckx x Mata Leona). Suprême Finn in turn is also a more than capable breeder as she is mother of a/o 5th Montoire 903 p., 7th Zone Tulle 1,966 p. and 7th Sermaises 1,703 p.
Iron Man (BE19-4207283): 9th National Ace Pigeon Extreme Long Distance. Not only did Tom and Marnik excel on middle and long distance races, they also stood their ground on the longest discipline. Their 4 year-old cock Iron Man honored his name on both Marseille (45th Nat.) and Perpignan (55th Nat.). Successfully completing races between 800 and 1000km after already having managed top results on this discipline last year, Tom and Marnik show that they can handle all disciplines no matter the distance. Iron Man is a cross between the best of the combination Verweij-De Haan and Batenburg-Geerinckx. Iron Man is also an excellent breeder and father of racers which are found at the top of national races and amongst the KBDB Ace Pigeons.
Little Father Finn (BE21-4201952): 11th National Ace Pigeon Long Distance. Another example of a racer which couldn't be stopped past season. Libourne, Valence (2x), Bergerac, Aurillac, Cahors, Limoges, Little Father Finn just couldn't get enough and managed to score amongst the KBDB Ace Pigeons as well as various PIPA Rankings. She managed to successfully complete 10 long distance races in 10 weeks, simply unmatched, making her the best pigeon in Belgium across 6,7,8,9 and 10 Long Distance races! An amazing feat which illustrates the quality on the lofts in Moortsele. She is a half-sister of Finn (same father) paired to the mother (Sam Bostoen) of super pigeon Little Ricky (2nd Nat. Ace Pigeon, 2nd Olympiad, grandfather Little Finn 1st Final OLR Victoria Falls, ...)
A breeding loft of unparalleled quality
Tom and Marnik Van Gaver house breeders which most of us could only dream of. The Finn Pair, Finn, Ricky, Tetske Pair, etc. have made Van Gaver grow out to be synonymous with sensational pigeon racing. Up to a national level, Tom and Marnik are unmatched thanks to their breeding loft with an excess of class. In the past years, the level of pigeon sport has generally become a lot higher. At the top, little is left to chance. The battle is tough and only the sharpest fanciers which keep pushing their own standards remain at the top. That is exactly what Tom and Marnik do, their strongly selected breeding loft and their will to win as brought them where they are now. The absolute top.
World-wide references
The list of references from fanciers in Belgium and abroad which were successful thanks to the introduction of Van Gaver bloodlines grows year after year. After the 2023 season, many colleague fanciers sent in references, having benefitted from this sensational stock. It would take too much time to list them all, therefore find a summary of references from 2023 below:
Gregory Tallieu (1st Nat. Argenton 14,171 p. and fastest of 22,951 p.), Gebr, Homma/Team Van OSS (1st Prov. 6,112 p.), Elzinga (1st Prov. 6,844 p.), Ludo Helsen (1-2-3 Prov. 4,176 p.), Wendela Wiersema (1st 4,185 p.), De Bock-De Smeyter (1st Prov. 4,262 p.), Kristof Verstraete (1st 3,487 p.), Philip De Maeseneer (1st Ace Pigeon and 1st Prov. 1,191 p.), Schwarze+Laser (1st 5,494 p.), Danny Schokkaert (fastest +10,000 p.), Jan Pappens (2st Nat. Bourges 18,729 p.), Karlo Van Rompaey (3rd Nat. Limoges and 9th Nat. Libourne), Kristof Delmulle (10th Best pigeon across 4 National races), Jan Pappens (12th Nat. Ace Pigeon KBDB), De Clercq-Van Puyvelde (15th Nat. Ace Pigeon KBDB), Jan Pappens (1st and 2nd Chateauroux 1,423 p.), JB Vandiest (1-2-2-3-4-5-5-6-7-9-10-10-etc. against an average of 1,000 p. Provincial), Julien Lelievre (1-1-1-2-3-etc. on short distance races), Marc Buyck (1st + 2nd / 650 p. on middle distance races), Jorik Mertens (1-1-1-1 against an average of 400 p. on short distance races), Luc & Dries Van Bombeke (2nd fastest Orleans 16,741 p.), WB de Kruijf (2nd against 1,799 p.), Jan Pappens (1st Zone Chateauroux and 3rd Best pigeon across 5 Heavy Middle Distance races), Elzinga (amongst the best Young bird Ace Pigeons The Netherlands), etc.
Extraordinary One Loft Race success
The Van Gaver pigeons not only managed to ensure success on their own lofts or on that of colleague fanciers but also on various One Loft Races around the world. Additoinal proof of this stock's class. See a short overview of results from popular races in 2023:
1st Ace Algarve Gold OLR Portugal 2023 (Robbert Zgud)
1st Semi Final & 14th Ace Derby Riachos (Brinkmann)
2nd Ace and 3rd Grand Average AS Golden 2023 (Brinkmann)
3rd Ace Algarve Gold OLR Portugal 2023 (Team Van Gaver-De Maeseneer)
3rd Final Talent Quatro FCI Czech OLR 2023 (Team Van Gaver)
4th Final Lagos de Moreno Mexico 2023 (Sigua Pigeons)
5th Semi Final Algarve Gold OLR Portugal 2023 (Altmiks Jurgen)
5th and 6th Final OLR Derby Moldova 2023 (Morren Sarah)
There were also strong performances at the Victoria Falls, Africa Pro series, Derby Marismas Seville, OLR Rimini, ... Van Gaver pigeons stand their ground. Wherever, whenever.
Lastly, some top results from 2023 on the National races:
Bourges : 3-13-21-68-130-320-356-386-455-466-466-476-594-665-840-992-... / 21,075 Old birds and 38 prizes out of 47 pigeons basketed
Bourges : 14-20-98-123-347-388-393-484-632-650-687-719-740-773-926-... / 18,729 Yearlings and 34 prizes out of 55 pigeons basketed
Limoges : 2-20-40-73-184-197-227-284-349-360-405-497-528-540-563-609... / 10,381 Old birds and 34 prizes out of 42 pigeons basketed
Bergerac : 23-59-84-93-106-107-129-189-277-351-393-461 and 642 / 3,838 Old birds and 13 prizes out of 14 pigeons basketed
Libourne : 3-10-11-25-37-39-100-153-168-221-258-279-784-823 and 891 / 3,880 Old birds and 15 prizes out of 20 pigeons basketed
Libourne : 21-31-130-174-175-194-205-235-237-275-352-518-605-660 and 821 / 4,822 Yearlings and 15 prizes out of 18 pigeons basketed
Perpignan : 55-127-131 and 220 / 5,722 Old birds and 4 prizes out of 5 pigeons basketed
Souillac : 1-7-8-20-33-40-57-73-78-81-85-127-153-160-171-209-268-... / 1,473 Old birds (Zone) and 18 prizes out of 26 pigeons basketed
Souillac : 3-14-27-31-32-41-42-45-64-75-78-85-91-104-105-107-110-... / 1,802 Yearlings (Zone) and 28 prizes out of 32 pigeons basketed
Valence : 14-39-209-332 and 519 / 3,655 Old birds and 5 prizes out of 8 pigeons basketed
Valence : 46-59-77-252-738 and 1,442 / 6,089 Old birds and 6 prizes out of 8 pigeons basketed
Marseille : 45 / 2,590 Old birds with only 1 pigeon in the race!!
Tulle : 5-6-10-12-42-52-107-113-137-139-140-166-223-228-232-248-... / 1,405 Old birds (Zone) and 20 prizes out of 28 pigeons basketed
Tulle : 7-20-22-24-38-41-43-56-64-66-74-81-86-89-128-134-135-... / 1,966 Yearlings (Zone) and 34 prizes out of 41 pigeons basketed
Souillac : 1-7-8-20-33-40-57-73-78-81-85-127-153-160-171-209-268-... / 1,473 Old birds (Zone) and 18 prizes out of 26 pigeons basketed
Souillac : 3-14-27-31-32-41-42-45-64-75-78-85-91-104-105-107-110-... / 1,802 Yearlings (Zone) and 28 prizes out of 32 pigeons basketed
Limoges : 1-3-20-96-124-142-144-176-188-191-245-303-318-425-489-... / 2,379 Old birds (Zone) and 16 prizes out of 32 pigeons basketed
Limoges : 1-4-9-24-30-32-41-46-58-76-77-83-157-172-183-199-216-... / 2,701 Yearlings (Zone) and 23 prizes out of 53 pigeons basketed
We may conclude that the colony of Tom and Marnik Van Gaver belong to the absolute best currently found in pigeon sport. One their own lofts, on that of other and one loft races, these pigeons are found at the top of the charts. The bloodlines of wonder pigeons Finn, Ricky and Tetske Pair in addition to several others have reached a level which few others can match. This is underlines by the many titles and top results won in the most prestigious competitions known in pigeon sport.