Sokolka National 2025 – The Stage of Fanciers Tudorel Hulea and Ionuț-Liviu Stan

Sokolka National is an Extreme category race, organized by the Dolj Pigeon Fanciers’ Branch. The stage was held for the first time in 2022, after fanciers from Oltenia and Muntenia were forced to change their flight route due to the war in Ukraine, and it proved to be a success right from the inaugural edition. This year, the pigeons were released on August 1st at 06:30 a.m.

Although the 3,697 pigeons entered in Sokolka National may not seem impressive at first glance, the southern region’s last extreme stage turned out to be a true marathon. A total of 370 fanciers took part, representing 15 counties and three pigeon racing provinces (Oltenia, Muntenia, and South-East).

First Place at One of the Longest Distances

Since the release point was in Poland, the race distances ranged between 900 and 1,100 km, with fanciers from Constanța facing the longest routes. Remarkably, the overall winner came exactly from this county. Competing at a theoretical disadvantage, the cock RO-2023-0404212, raced by Tudorel Hulea from Cobadin, managed to claim first place despite having to fly 1,097 km. His arrival was recorded on the second day of the competition at 05:21:28, achieving an average speed of 1,206.93 m/min.

Outstanding Performance from Ionuț-Liviu Stan

Another standout at Sokolka National 2025 was Ionuț-Liviu Stan, a fancier from the Brăila Branch. At the end of the first day, he was leading both the pigeon and fanciers’ rankings. His hens RO-2022-1107028 and RO-2019-1014893 returned from Sokolka at 20:00:51 and 20:29:31, covering a distance of 961 km. Both were nominated for the team, with the first hen provisionally ranking 1st overall.

However, as mentioned, Tudorel Hulea’s cock eventually overtook her, pushing Stan into 2nd place in the pigeon ranking. Nevertheless, in the general fanciers’ ranking, no one managed to surpass him. With 6 pigeons classified out of 7 entered and a penalty coefficient of 8.93 points, Ionuț-Liviu Stan secured 1st place overall at fanciers level.