Filip is hot on Bokoi’s heels

The battle for the lead in The League of Rising Scales has gained a new chapter.

At the Young Belgian Koi Show today, Filip Poppe claimed the highest honor by winning the Grand Champion title with an impressive Kohaku from breeder Yoshino. The elegant three-stepper convinced the judges with a combination of powerful body, excellent skin quality and a presentation that was completely balanced. In a show where all koi are allowed to measure a maximum of 64 centimeters, Poppe’s Kohaku proved to be the absolute standout of the day.

The Young Belgian Koi Show was organized on the grounds of Poisson d’Or, located in southwestern Wallonia, near the French border. With 21 competition vessels, the show was just big enough to officially count toward The League of Rising Scales. This means that victory not only earns a prestigious title, but also has a direct impact on the standings.

And those implications could be significant with his second title of the season.

After the Koi Show Oldenzaal, Filip Poppe had to cede the lead in the league to Bokoi. The Dutch dealer had worked his way up to head of the season with an impressive series of performances. Especially notable was that Bokoi reached this position without winning a Grand Champion title. While other players made great strides via exclusive grand prizes, Bokoi built his lead via breadth, consistency and an impressive amount of points from Best in Variety, Best in Size and other competitive awards.

Now Filip seems to have provided the answer. With this Grand Champion victory, he adds another top prize to a season in which he has already managed to collect several absolute top awards. Based on the current points table, a Grand Champion represents 250 points. Since the Young Belgian Koi Show falls within the Minor Show category with 21 competition vessels, a factor of 0.8 applies. That means that with the Grand Champion, Filip adds 200 league points to his total. And additional points may be added once the full results are published by the organizing Belgian Koi Society.

The question now hanging over the league is therefore simple: Is this enough to knock Bokoi off the throne again? That calculation will follow once all the results are officially processed, but what is clear is that the battle for the lead is once again completely open.

What makes this victory extra special is that Filip Poppe has traditionally not been known as a frequent participant in Young Koi Shows. Yet with the arrival of a season, that seems to have changed somewhat.n Since his retirement just a single week ago, the Belgian hobbyist has more time to actively participate in shows and The League of Rising Scales seems to have become a new source of motivation. In doing so, he does not hide his ambition. He wants to be the best hobbyist in Europe. Not only within Belgium. Not only within his own category. But within the entire playing field of the league.

And that means competing not only with hobbyists like Wim De Wit, Geert Schrijvers and William Jaspers, but also with professional players who buy directly from Japanese breeders and have complete competitive line-ups. That is precisely why this victory feels bigger than just a Grand Champion at a Young Show. This feels like another move in a season that is beginning to look more and more like a chess match between players who all have the same goal:

Being on top at the end of the season. Next week it’s time for Koi Show Noorderlicht

The competition continues.