The Olympics spirit calls for peaceful competition between nations. In China the bird that best represents both peace and competition is the gezi—dove or pigeon.
The Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics took place at the Bird’s Nest stadium. One performance transformed the traditional Chinese character of 'he' (peace) into a flying bird. Considering the importance of pigeon racing to Chinese culture, I think that the bird that roosts at the Bird’s Nest is a pigeon, not a dove.
Pigeon racing in China goes way back to the Ming Dynasty. Pigeon breeders across the centuries have raised the pigeons not simply for their calming coos, but for the jolts of excitement of the race.
During the Cultural Revolution pigeon racing was banned because it was determined to be "feudal, capitalist and revisionist."
China now has a capitalist economy, and official ceremonies release flocks of pigeons in true capitalist fashion.
Preparations for the Olympics have meant some restrictions on pigeon breeders.
The Beijing government, citing the danger flying objects pose to airplanes, banned raising pigeons and flying kites in parts of the city. The pigeon ban covers central, southern, and western districts.
Raising pigeons is not allowed near Tiananmen Square, a resident of Wang Pi Hutong in Qianmen, a southern district of Beijing, informed me.
Pigeons, maligned as dirty city birds, might drop white shit over the portrait of Mao Zedong. Or worse, they might despoil the newly built Olympics venues and storefronts.
The pigeon ban does not apply to Dawangjing, a community on the eastern outskirts of Beijing near the third ring road. A dozen of pigeon breeders continue to raise and train their pigeons there.
When he first greeted me, Cui You was standing next to one of his pigeon coops on the roof of his flat. He wore a crisp white long sleeve shirt and piece of jade on a red string around his neck.
Over the past five years, he has transported the materials up to his roof to build more than four aviaries by hand. He introduced me to two 19-day-old baby pigeons roosting together in a nest. They were breathing heavily and their plumage was not quite developed. In a week they will look the same as full adults.When I described the freckled brown pigeons as the most beautiful, Cui corrected me, saying, “Right now they are not clean, not pretty.” They are molting, thus ugly.
Dogs Xiao Hei, Huang Huang, and Dou Dou reside on the roof with the pigeons. They chase away the neighborhood cats and yellow weasels that attack pigeons. Cui does not have the habit of petting dogs; he keeps them solely to guard his prized birds.
Cui points to a broken egg yolk and shells on the floor of the cage. He regrets not paying close enough attention to the female had needed a nest to lay her eggs. That fallen egg wasted his bird’s energy.
Cui started to enter his pigeons into races in 2003. Just as athletes preparing for the Olympics need coaches and nutritionists, so do pigeons require their breeder’s care to prepare for the race. Raising and caring for the bird well can increase the bird’s health and confidence.
In the most recent race, pigeon breeders transported their birds to Henan, and had them fly the 400 to 500 km back to their respective homes in Beijing. The small electronic tags attached to the birds’ feet have a registered signal.
When the weather is good, a fast pigeon flies 500 meters a minute. Adverse weather conditions slow the bird down to 100 meters a minute. “When it is about to rain a lot, the bird waits for the rain to stop before returning, then speed not so easy to tell,” says Cui.
While his pigeon races back home, Cui waits for the bird’s return in the comfort of his home.
“After watching the first race competition, and the pigeons seemed tired, my heart hurt. I was especially moved, and then I liked the pigeons even more,” he says.
One of his pigeons earned second place in a national competition. The cash prize of a few thousand renminbi did not cover the cost of breeding pigeons. Last year Cui bought four pigeons for 20,000 renminbi. So far these four pigeons have parented seven birds. Cui looks forward to seeing how they will race in October:
“When my pigeon flies particularly well, my heart is especially comfortable, especially happy. Not making money is okay. Paying out of pocket is okay. This activity is about loving to play."