From an ancient pastime, bird racing has now become a pastime for wealthy businessmen in China.
But the sale is not quite that simple.
The pigeon auction was held in Beijing on November 25.
Dozens of other transactions worth over $100,000 were pure transactions, according to auction viewers.
Racing pigeons have a sense of direction that science cannot explain.
Although good breeds do not necessarily guarantee victory, descendants of champions – especially Belgian pigeons – still command the highest prices.
A foreign visitor is watching pigeons at the auction.
China has hundreds of pigeon clubs.
Pioneer Club in Beijing’s western suburbs is one of the flashiest.
But the racing bird is kept in a warm house.
The birds are tested again after the race.
`Pigeons caught in the fog will crash into a wall, some will lose their way,` said Stuart Chu – a Taiwanese breeder.
Wealthy owners `are often people who raised birds when they were young and when they are successful, they want to do it again,` said Su Quanlin – founder of Pioneer Club.
Every year, Pioneer Club organizes the `Iron Eagle` tournament consisting of four races with expensive admission tickets and a total prize value of more than 2.4 million USD.
It’s been 6 hours since the birds were released to find their way home, and the club’s lawn is still very quiet.
Suddenly, a gray bird appeared in the sky and rushed towards the cage.
This year’s final victory belongs to the pigeon of pharmaceutical tycoon – Guo.
One month later, the top birds will have to be auctioned according to the rules of the competition.
In the auction room, Guo continuously raised the sign to make sure he kept his bird despite having to split the extremely high commission.
