THE RACING PIGEON 26 APRIL 2024
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BOBBY & ANTHONY BESANT of Worcester Park
254th Open NFC Nantes (10,591 birds), 1st Club, 1st Surrey Federation Weymouth (1,973 birds), 1st Section E, 1st Open NFC Bordeaux (3,776 birds). This great pigeon won the National by over 45 minutes, winning £4,478, a record amount of cash for a single pigeon in one race at that time, winning a RPRA Merit Award for 250-450 miles performance, awarded the London Social Champion of London Trophy in 1991. Ken said at the time he was a once in a lifetime pigeon and was a vhampion at stock, with his children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews all won in Open and National competition. As I have previously stated, Bobby has been a good friend of mine for many years and as I’ve written many times before, he is one of the best pigeon fanciers I’ve ever met. Bobby is a pigeon fancier of the highest order, but always knew where to draw the line where his family were concerned, always putting Angela and the kids first. Bobby is a great guy and a brilliant pigeon fancier. I was highly delighted to see him re-enter the sport at the beginning of 2008, after a fifteen years lay off and at that time I predicted he would set the sport alight and he really has! Bob and Anthony are just picking out their races these days and only competed in National Flying Club and British International Championship Club events. One of the best racing cocks in recent years is the blue cock, ‘Classic Near Miss’ and he had a brilliant racing record, winning six premier positions in the National and Classic including: 2008 – 2nd SW Section, 2nd Open L&SECC Guernsey (1,590 birds); 2009 – 2nd SW Section, 2nd Open L&SECC Bergerac (1,135 birds). This Champion racing cock was bred by Page Brothers of Yorkshire and is down from their ‘Gladiator’ bloodlines.
I had a lovely surprise recently when my good friend, Bob Besant, visited our home in Claygate. It’s been quite a while since we have seen one another and it was great to see him looking so fit. Needless to say, Bobby is one of the best pigeon racers God ever put on Earth and one of a very few fanciers to win 1st Open International in the UK. Bobby and his son Anthony won 1st Open International Agen in 2015 with their wonderful dark cock, Champion ’Noble Dream’. This brilliant cock is now eleven years old and is still filling his eggs. Bobby walked in our house today with a
Federation. The boys carried this great fancier’s name on in pigeon racing history to an even higher degree. The Besant partners had been premier prize winners in the very strong Kingston & District HS countless times through the years. In later years the partnership was made up of Bobby, Ken and Bobby’s son Anthony. The loft won 1st Open National Flying Club for the second time in 1999, from Bordeaux, with 3,776 birds taking part in the race. The partners’ winner, the Herbot blue cock, Champion ‘Besant’s Bishop’s Pride’, was bred by Brian Bishop of Sutton and in six consecutive races he won 2nd Club Weymouth (108 miles), 5th Club Exeter (151 miles), 28th Section E (2,500 birds), Keith Mott and Bob Besant with ‘Nobel Dream’ in 2015.
lovely bunch of flowers for Betty and a pigeon basket with the ‘Champ’ in. He brought ‘Noble Dream’ around to show me and he looked really magnificent for an eleven year old. A truly wonderful, once in a life time pigeon! We got the camera out and had our photo taken with the ‘Champ’, as we did in 2015, when he won the International. Bobby thanks for the visit today, it was really great see you mate. Bobby & Anthony Besant of Worcester Park own one of the all-time premier lofts in the UK, winning 1st Open NFC (twice), countless times 1st Federation through many years and now 1st Open International Agen (10,510 birds) in the 2015 season. A racing record second to none, achieved over many years. Bobby and I have been friends since the 1970’s, when we both had shoulder length hair and were both ‘foot loose and fancy free’ in our flared bottom trousers and Cuban heeled boots. I have now known the Besant family for well over 50 years, and in that time I have seen them win every major award there is to win in pigeon racing. In the early days the Besant brothers, Ken, Bobby and Ron, won at club, Open, Federation, Combine and National level and even in the 1970’s theirs had to be rated as one of the best lofts in the United Kingdom. When I first met Bobby and Ken in 1970, their dad, Cecil, had just passed away and the boys were about to take over the very successful C H Besant & Sons pigeons. Although I never met Cecil, I had always admired his fantastic performances in the Surrey Champion ‘Noble Dream’, 1st Open International Agen 2015. Owned by Bob & Anthony Besant.
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