Sensational 2024 season for Team Catrinescu (Vâlcea)

"Team Catrinescu", the tandem formed by pigeon fanciers Gabriel Catrinescu and Ionuț Manu, is a reference name for Vâlcea county from a pigeon fanciers point of view. Both in terms of results and the pigeons they work with, Team Catrinescu stands out year after year, as it happened in the 2024 season. Thus, both at the level of stages and after centralizations, Team Catrinescu is in the 2024 season in the majority the charts at the county level and beyond, and in the season with youngsters, which is still ongoing, their arrivals are downright astonishing.

At county, provincial and national level, Team Catrinescu has an impressive track record. They compete in all categories and have managed to win important trophies in all distance segments. Of course, all these results are due to the pigeons with which they compete and which come from the best and most current lines in Europe: Batemburg vd. Merwe, Jelle Jellema, Gaby Vandenabeele, Arie Dijkstra, Koopman, Dirck v.d. Bulk, Patrick Boerek, J. Hooymans, etc. But, to the same extent, we are also talking about very skilled breeders who manage to make the most of the very good genetics they possess.

Very good arrivals at the races level in 2024

Although the 2024 season was a challenge, competing on a new route, to the South (Bulgaria), the arrivals of the pigeons in the Team Catrinescu loft were just as good. Thus, the two managed to win several stages (1st place pigeons or breeders) or at least rank on the podium, in the season of mature pigeons. For example, at the first speed race, Team Catrinescu took the first 11 places in the launch, out of 4,975 pigeons (167 km) and the 1st place among breeders, out of 100 participants. In the second speed race (221 km), Team Catrinescu takes the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th places. In the second long distance race of the season, the tandem takes the 3rd place on the launch (535 km). In the third long distance race, the finishes are even better, the two occupying the 1st, 6th and 7th places in the launch and the 2nd place in the breeders (535 km, 2,322 pigeons and 312 breeders; 4 participating counties). They had good arrivals in the marathon stages as well, as was the case in the third race from Athens (753 km), where they took the 2nd place among breeders, out of 170 participants, ranking 3 pigeons out of all those entered.

Youngsters season is a dream season

Since the 2024 season, five races have been held with the youngsters and all these stages have a common denominator: Team Catrinescu. Whether we are talking about the ranking of the pigeons or that of the breeders, Team Catrinescu is on the first or first places. Thus, at the first race, the two took 1st place among breeders (87 participants); in the second race with the chicks, he takes the first 29 (!) places per launch out of 4,761 pigeons and the 1st place among breeders; at race no. 3 occupy the first 6 places on release and the 1st place in breeders; at race no. 4 occupy the first 4 places on release, and in the race no. 5 ranks 2 on release and 1 at breeders.

In addition to the results at the stage level, Team Catrinescu has a very good season even after the centralization of the norms. As the provincial and national rankings are still being worked on, and the season with youngsters is in full swing, we can recall at least some of the trophies won by Team Catrinescu at the county level: 2nd place Speed ​​two years, 1st place Speed ​​three years, 1st and 3rd places All Round Olt birds, 3rd place Speed ​​Breeders, 1st place Speed ​​Breeders two years, 2nd place Long distance Breeders, 1st place Al Round Breeders.