Tough guys who don't ruffle feathers

Mike Tyson's boxing career may have been grounded by Lennox Lewis in Memphis on Saturday, but things could soon take off for the American outside the ring.

If Tyson's plea for a re-match is refused by the heavyweight champion of the world then he will turn to a more gentle pursuit - flying pigeons.

"I'll go and fly my pigeons in New York," he said yesterday. "I'm just going to chill out with my children and fly my birds."

Iron Mike is not the only volatile sportsman with a penchant for pigeons.

Everton striker Duncan Ferguson, who served six weeks in Barlinnie prison for headbutting Raith Rovers defender John McStay, has kept pigeons since the age of 12.

So what makes these aggressive-athletes, who've had more than one brush with the law during their turbulent careers, spend their leisure time with feathered friends?

"Keeping pigeons is very relaxing," Alan Roscoe, chairman of the National Pigeon Association, told Standard Sport.

" By spending time with pigeons a person can get away from their problems, and you also build up a relationship with your birds.

"Tyson keeps fancy show pigeons, while Ferguson has racing birds.

"The pigeons Tyson keeps are closer to the show dogs you'd find at Crufts, but racing pigeons are like working dogs such as greyhounds. Keeping show pigeons is a very gentle, sedate pastime as it's basically a beauty contest.

"There's no prize money, and you'd be lucky to win a prize card or a rosette."

Despite the enthusiasm of Tyson and Ferguson, though, Roscoe does not believe his sport attracts a violent crowd, pointing to the involvement of mild-mannered former Tottenham and Queens Park Rangers manager Gerry Francis.

"I wouldn't have thought pigeon keepers were any more aggressive than any other people," said Roscoe.

"One of the best things about the sport is that it attracts people from all walks of life, from different backgrounds."