Dutch call off their skating epic

No Eleven Cities Tour 2012 for the time being

After a long and tense wait that gripped the nation, the organisers of the Dutch Elfstedentocht (Eleven Cities Tour) skating epic have decided not to hold the event, at least not in the coming days. The ice at some places on the route along the eleven Friesian cities has not reached the required thickness of 15 centimetres. This is a precondition laid down by the organisers, the Association of the Eleven Frisian Cities, for letting some 16,000 participants skate safely across the ice in this mother of all skating classics.

People throughout the Netherlands are bitterly disappointed that the Eleven Cities Tour will not go ahead after all. The past few days have been a nail-biting wait for skating enthusiasts in the Netherlands, while people in neighbouring countries have also followed the developments in eager anticipation. Would the ice in Friesland pass the thickness test? The answer came yesterday evening when the decision was announced to call off the Eleven Cities Tour, at least for now.

History

The first Elfstedentocht took place back in 1909. Since then the event has been held 15 times in total. The event traditionally starts and finishes in Leeuwarden, the capital of Friesland province. The other ten towns which the event passes through are Sneek, IJlst, Sloten, Stavoren, Hindeloopen, Workum, Bolsward, Harlingen, Franeker and Dokkum before returning to Leeuwarden. The finishing line of the race is a windmill called the Bullemolen.

The most recent versions of the Elfstedentocht were held in 1985, 1986 and 1997. It is the world's biggest skating event, covering a distance of 200 kilometres. Around 16,000 skaters take to the ice, cheered on by approximately two million spectators. It is not known when there might be a new opportunity to hold the Elfstedentocht.