It might not be considered the sport of kings, but it does have a noble, decorated history.

It has been fancied by royals for centuries, including Queen Elizabeth, and made a one-time appearance as an Olympic sport at the 1900 Games in Paris.

Pigeon racing is global, offering purses upwards of $1 million. It has roosted in Hawaii for nearly 100 years, with 11 clubs on Oahu, two on the Big Island and one each on Maui and Kauai.

And, as with any competitive sport, it takes time and money, dedication and passion. Add the connection created when spending hours training a bird to return to its loft, and the bond becomes intimate and strong.

"When you love them the most is when they come home," said Dennis Mactagone, whose Mililani loft is currently home to about 75 pigeons. "I’ve been involved for about 36 years. I’ve always liked all things feathered.

"I have about six breeds, imported from all over the world, Belgium, California, Britain. I wouldn’t want to know how much I’ve spent."

Mactagone, retired from the Hawaii Carpenters Union, said he understands indulgences, such as a $2,000 Louis Vuitton handbag. His wife reciprocates with her understanding of the expense of keeping competitive birds.

The latest version of "Mac’s Loft" is a serene, condo-like setting with separate space for his older pigeons and new imports. The aroma is that of anise, known for its calming effect, with air conditioning and lighting settings adjusted for time of day and mating season.

Breeding is usually done in November or December with a gestation of 18 days. The squabs — baby pigeons — are banded within five days of hatching, establishing their birth year, much like youth soccer and Little League use "league age" to define competition levels.

"Young Birds" are those born within that calendar year and, for the Oahu Federation, the YB races start in August. The federation’s "Old Birds" schedule begins in March.

There also are special races, some in conjunction with the federation schedule, with prize money for a designated accomplishment such as fastest average air speed. Other races are held separately, including the Leeward Classic and FSC Futurity.

Allan Komatsu is carrying on a family tradition. His father, Ralph, raised show pigeons — or fancy pigeons — and was president of the Hawaii Pigeon Association.

"I’ve always been around pigeons," said Komatsu, a retired bank vice president who maintains his loft at his mother’s Kuliouou home. "The show pigeons were fun to be around, but then I learned about racing pigeons. They’re more exciting.

"It’s very relaxing and you make friends all over. You trade them. A lot of mine are gifts."

Komatsu recalled a visit from a man vacationing from Minnesota who had seen his flock flying and asked about buying one of the pigeons. Instead, Komatsu asked for bands from the man’s loft and sent the birds to Minnesota.

Shipping from Hawaii is fairly simple, done through the U.S. Postal System — second-day air mail — and with no quarantine period since Hawaii is a rabies-free state. If pigeons are shipped to Hawaii from other than Alaska (also rabies-free), there is a quarantine period.

The Oahu Federation release sites are on Maui and the Big Island. Oahu clubs ship between 1,500 and 2,000 pigeons via Aloha Cargo, with races increasing in distance as the season progresses, from the old bird opener at Makawao, Maui, to its finale at South Point, Hawaii.

For neighbor island flyers, the races are also from another island to the respective home lofts. For example, Maui flyers race birds from Oahu and Kauai.

In all cases, birds are shipped and picked up from the airport by a "liberator," who gets paid to deliver the birds to the designated release points.

Because lofts are located throughout the island chain, results are not about which pigeon finishes first. It’s about speed, with a handicap system in place to determine the fastest times.

Birds and lofts collect points during the season, leading to certificates for champions in both categories. Dust-collecting trophies are all but a thing of the past, although some futurity events still hand them out.

The sport has gradually gone high-tech, moving from the traditional clock timing method to electronic. Just as runners have timing chips, so do pigeons. And, like competitive runners, pigeons have training regimens that include diet, and speed and endurance workouts.

For speed training, Stan George will take his birds to Makapuu with about 30 minutes before it gets dark and have them fly to his Halawa loft.

"If it gets dark, they stop, hunker down for the night," he said. "When the sun comes up, they start up again."

Losing a pigeon is rare, but it does happen. Since the birds don’t fly at night, they are tasty prey for both animals and humans.

Danny Lum, another second-generation pigeon breeder and Oahu Federation secretary-treasurer, can attest to that. The retired Roosevelt High counselor said when his father, Peter, raised fancy pigeons "he had to negotiate with his parents to not eat his pigeons," Lum said. "He told them, ‘I’ll breed you some, but you cannot eat all of them.’ "

The sport also is beginning to use GPS tracking, more for data that will show if and where a pigeon might wander off course. There is drug testing involved to prevent things such as steroid abuse.

Pigeons are the oldest domesticated bird, bred for beauty and intelligence, and perhaps best known for military use for communications and reconnaissance purposes. Consider that, in World War II, the U.S. Army Pigeon Service consisted of 3,150 soldiers and 54,000 pigeons. The pigeon G.I. Joe received the Dickin Medal for gallantry for saving an estimated 1,000 lives and other "hero pigeons" honorably discharged and donated to zoos.

When the end comes for some of Oahu’s racing pigeons, it’s no different than burying a beloved pet in the back yard.

Some of Lum’s favored pigeons are buried under a thriving mango tree.

Mactagone has a special coop for those that no longer race.

"When they retire they go and relax," he said. "They earned it."