Skating fever grips Holland

Eleven Cities Tour: the mother of all skating events

With night-time temperatures in the Netherlands regularly plunging below -10°C in the past week, the Dutch are brimming with excitement about the legendary Elfstedentocht, the world's most prestigious speed and leisure skating event. Provided that the thickness of the ice allows, the Association of the Eleven Frisian Cities (Koninklijke Vereniging De Friese Elf Steden) is considering organising the almost 200-kilometre event across natural ice in the coming days. As the name suggests, the event passes through 11 Frisian cities in what ranks as the world's biggest skating competition, typically attracting more than 16,000 skaters.

The Association of the Eleven Frisian Cities met last weekend to discuss the condition of the ice in Friesland province. The severely freezing temperatures will remain over the coming days and the association is well-prepared for the event to go ahead. Detailed scenarios are in place to cope with the approximately two million visitors from the Netherlands and other countries who are likely to pour in to Friesland if the event proceeds. The ice must be at least 15 centimetres thick to be strong enough to support 16,000 skaters. This thickness has not yet been achieved everywhere by a long way. All the same, says the association, there is a 'cautious likelihood' that the tour will finally be held again this year. Speed skating champion Sven Kramer has already declared his wish to participate in the Elfstedentocht.

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 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 took place in 1985, 1986 and 1997. One of the competitors in the 1986 event was the Crown Prince of the Netherlands, skating under the name of W.A. van Buren. The fastest-ever time was recorded by Dutch professional skater Evert van Benthem in 1985. He completed the 200 kilometres in 6 hours and 47 minutes.

As the weather in the Netherlands frequently does not allow skating, the Elfstedentocht can also be undertaken by bicycle, boat, foot, wheeled skates (skeelers) or car. Numerous national and international skating events take place in the Thialf Stadium in the Friesian city of Heerenveen.

Friesland

Friesland has Europe's largest expanse of interconnected inland lakes. The province sometimes appears to consist almost entirely of water, but in actual fact it has far more to offer. Friesland boasts numerous forests, beaches and meadows and is the ideal province for cyclists and walkers alike. But it also has much to offer water sports enthusiasts. It is no coincidence that this province ranks as a top tourist attraction.

The rich diversity of Friesian landscapes and cultures provides ample opportunities for recreation. Land and sea meet each other in northeast Friesland. This part of the province is sometimes referred to as Lauwersland. It is an ideal area for walking and cycling and offers a host of opportunities for water sports. The villages in this part of the province are characterised by tranquillity and space, while the unspoiled Wadden mudflats and the Lauwersmeer National Park are unique parts of the Netherlands. The Wadden area is on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Northwest Friesland has a character all of its own, with many possibilities for recreation. It is a landscape made up of channels, lakes and canals. It also boasts ancient towns and sprawling meadows. There are lots of opportunities for cycling, walking and sailing. In contrast, southeast Friesland offers visitors an entirely different view of the province. This area is made up of forests, undulating park-like landscapes, heaths, different types of peaty soil and stretches of turf. There are welcoming villages, interesting museums and hidden lakeland woods. In southwest Friesland, the forests in Gaasterland interchange with undulating meadows and views far across Ijsselmeer lake. Visitors can admire stately tree-lined avenues with centuries-old beech trees - a guarantee for charming routes. One of those routes is the Aldfars Erfroute, a historical tour of Friesland's heritage. The province has four national parks (Lauwersmeer, Schiermonnikoog, Drents-Friese Wold and Alde Faenen), all of which are open to the public.

Friesian language

Two languages are spoken in Friesland: Dutch and Friesian. The Friesian people are proud of their own language. It is spoken by no less than 74% of the Friesian population. Friesian is more than 1500 years old and officially recognised as the second national language of the Netherlands.

From fierljeppen to skûtsjesilen

Besides a huge amount of water, Friesland offers water sports enthusiast numerous events – some of them large – on and around water. One such event is skûtsjesilen, an annual regatta on the Friesian lakes, whereby Friesian beurtschepen (shuttle boats) compete against each other for fourteen days to become champion. Each summer there is also the Sneekweek, Europe's largest inland waterway event. Although the event focuses primarily on sailing, it also has much to offer those who do not engage in water sports. Attractions include a braderie (street fair), funfair, book market and music festival. Every year this week attracts thousands of visitors to Sneek. Another long-established Friesian tradition is fierljeppen, pole-vaulting across water.

Beerenburg

A true Friesian drinks Beerenburg, made by adding herbs to jenever. There are those who say that Friesland is Beerenburg. There is no pub in the province that does not serve the drink. Various distilleries offer guided tours to see how the herbal drink containing 30% alcohol is made, but the exact ingredients remain a secret.

Overnight accommodation

Friesland offers a wide choice of overnight accommodation. In addition to hotels, apartments and bungalow parks there are many farms that offer Bêd & Brochje (Bed & Breakfast). A novel way of spending the night in Friesland is to sleep in a lighthouse, lifeboat, quayside crane or wine barrel.