Jan Bos, Piet Kleine, Jan Roelof Kruithof, Renate Groenewold, Marije Joling and Linda de Vries. They all learned to skate earlier or grew up skating in De Smelt (later De Bonte Wever) in Assen. Now it is a hotel, where you can swim or play miniature golf, for example, and where conferences are held.
In the past you could also skate there. In 1982 the world all-round championship was held in Assen, and in the 1990s and early 2000s the Dutch all-round, sprint and distance championships were organized several times.
Since 2016, Drenthe no longer has a permanent skating rink. But that may be about to change. “If everything goes smoothly, we could skate again in the winter season of 2025/2026,” says Bart Jonkers on behalf of the KNSB Drenthe. And then he means skating on a real 400-meter skating rink. “The chance that the job will come? More than 50 percent. I have very high hopes for it.”
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