What 'pigeon racing' is and what it has to do with a boxing legend

"Taking on Tyson" shows a different side of the boxing legend as he enters the realm of  pigeon racing

I had zero idea what "pigeon racing" was when I received a press release about boxing legend Mike Tyson doing a show about it on Animal Planet. My first thought was: "What the heck is pigeon racing, anyway?!"

A curious bee that I am, I called up my friend Wikipedia and asked him what exactly "pigeon racing" is. According to Wiki, pigeon racing is "the sport of releasing specially trained racing pigeons, which then return to their homes over a carefully measured distance."

Through his boxing career, Tyson has been raising pigeons during his down time

How does one win the race then, I asked Wiki. My friend Wikipedia said that "the time it takes the animal to cover the specified distance is measured and the birds rate of travel is calculated and compared with all of the other pigeons in the race to determine which animal returned at the highest speed." Festive!

Now that it's clear to me what this sport is about, it struck me as interesting to learn that the famous and infamous heavyweight champion Mike Tyson is in love with this feathered creature.

“The first thing I ever loved in my life was a pigeon. I don't know why… I feel ridiculous trying to explain it,” the press release quoted Tyson as saying. “Pigeons are a part of my life. It’s a constant with my sanity in a weird way; this is just what I do. If I'm lucky enough to die an old man, I'm going to have birds.”

Called "Taking on Tyson," the six-part series will show the heavyweight boxing legend and Brooklyn native his love for breeding and raising pigeons. Apparently, Mike threw his first punch when a neighborhood bully killed one of his beloved pigeons and threw it in his face. This is the first time he'll race the pigeons he raised himself.

With unprecedented access to the neighbourhood haunts he grew up in and lifelong friends who surround him, this docudrama introduces audiences to the highly competitive, bizarrely fascinating subculture of pigeon racing. I didn't realize there's so much machismo in this sport as there are in boxing.

I guess, when it comes to sport, many times it's really not about the money. It's more about bragging rights.

* "Taking on Tyson" airs Tuesdays at 10pm on Animal Planet starting May 10. The show encores Saturdays at 12noon and Sundays at 6pm.