THE WESTERN Slovak town of Nitra became the capital of racing pigeons on February 2 and 3, when its Agrokomplex hosted the first Central European Exhibition of Racing Pigeons.
Pigeon breeders from across Central and Eastern Europe exhibited about 1,200 pigeons in total, the Plus Jeden Deň daily wrote.
Racing pigeons have great stamina, with the ability to fly 1,000 kilometres without a break at speeds up to 100 kilometres per hour.
"The best ones cost hundreds of thousands of crowns," Daniel Krajčík, one of the event's organisers, told the daily.
Such experienced pigeons are only used for breeding, but are still valuable enough to be highly insured.
"Polish breeders have pigeons here insured at Sk1 million," said Krajčík.
