In China, a large number of people take the sport of pigeon racing very(serious). Many competitors spend big money getting their(hand) on top-performing birds. One such competitor is 57-year-old Yu Yuguang. He says he gets so excited waiting for his pigeons(arrive) at the end of a race that his heart starts beating fast. "Those are the most intense and enjoyable moments of a pigeon race." Yu told Reuters News Agency. Recently, his 7-month-old pigeon (name) "Little Ancestor" placed first in a Chinese Racing Pigeon Association race. The race started in Lang fang, near the Chinese capital Beijing,it ended in Shanghai. The win earned Yu $760 in prize money. That amount, however, is far (little) than the $30, 600 he spends on his 500 pigeons each year.
Pigeon racing has a long history in China. It began as a sport enjoyed mainly by very rich people. But the country's economic development over the years (allow) the sport to spread beyond wealthy. "Membership in the Chinese Pigeon Association has jumped tens of thousands in the 1980s to about 400,000 today," (say) the group's vice president, Huang Jian.
