The "Ice Ribbon" of the National Speed Skating Hall in Beijing's Aussen Park is brightly lit, and the bright orange Dutch national logo "NL" shines with LED lights and transparent ice surfaces. Previously, it was here that the Dutch Embassy in Beijing completed the shooting of the national logo "NL".
Photo: Authorized by the Embassy of the Netherlands in China
The photograph is like a letter from a Dutchman in Beijing to his hometown, in which the Dutch have a special love for ice and snow sports in their genes, whenever and wherever they are.
Not only that, at the recent "Meet in Beijing" speed skating China Open, Kleinveld from the Netherlands won the first event in the women's 3000 meters competition.
Kleinveld is excited to win the beijing Winter Olympics venue, saying, "This venue is very beautiful, the ice experience is also very good, I am honored to be here to compete." ”
The upcoming year of 2022 is also a very special year for the Dutch who love ice and snow sports. The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics is just around the corner, and 2022 will also mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the Netherlands.
As one of the many countries in the middle and high latitudes of Europe, how much does the Netherlands really love ice and snow sports? What contribution did the Dutch make to the legacy of ice and snow sports?
This article will introduce you to:
· Ice culture carved in DNA
· How good is the Dutch skating gear?
· Sporting without forgetting sustainable development
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="29" > ice culture engraved in DNA</h1>
In 1608, the Netherlands ushered in a cold winter, and Europe was experiencing the era of "Xiaoice River".
Dutch painter Hendrick Avercamp created the oak painting Skater and Winter Picture, which depicts a variety of skaters enjoying a day on an icy river: a child less than the length of an adult's leg walks on the ice, and someone plays ice hockey in groups of three or five.
Skaters and Winter Landscapes, photo/Hendrick Avercamp Public Domain Agreement
In the winter of 2019, I had the privilege of admiring the painting at the Royal Moretes Gallery in The Hague, the Netherlands; a few days later, I saw a similar scene in front of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Spanning 400 years of time, from the recording of paintbrushes to the shooting of photographs, the Dutch passion for ice sports has been the same for a hundred years.
Skaters in Amsterdam, photo/smelling the rain photo
In the Netherlands, children learn to walk at the age of two, skate at the age of three, and bike at the age of four. Junior high schools in the Dutch province of Friesland incorporate skating into their curriculum, going to the rink twice a week.
Dutch ambassador to China He Weimin, the youngest of five, told this writer that he began to skate with his parents when he was six or seven years old, and He Weimin remembers that after each skating, he returned to the house from the ice and snow to drink a cup of warm hot chocolate, which also made skating one of his favorite family activities.
"Winter in the Netherlands naturally has a good ice surface, and I still love skating today. I think every country has a different sports culture, and the children there are influenced by a certain atmosphere from an early age. Skating and speed skating are engraved in our Dutch genes. He Weimin sighed.
Skating kids, picture /pixabay gallery authorized use
In early February 2021, many Dutch people began to wait for the "11 City Tour", which designed a ring line connecting the canals, rivers and lakes of 11 cities in the north of the Netherlands, covering a distance of nearly 200 kilometers.
For safety reasons, the ice surface thickness throughout the process must be no less than 15 cm. Suitable weather conditions are not good to encounter, in addition to being cold enough, if there is too much rain, it will also make the ice surface not meet the requirements. Thus, since the beginning of the campaign in 1909, only 15 times have been held in total.
Matthijs CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 protocol
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="132" > how good is the Dutch skating gear? </h1>
In addition to the efforts of the athletes themselves, the continuous iteration of hardware equipment is also an important reason to ensure the competitiveness of domestic athletes. He Weimin told this writer that the Dutch government supports tripartite cooperation between innovative companies, research institutions and top athletes.
Before the spread of industrial products, generations of people learned to skate by placing an ordinary chair on the ice to assist in the implementation. However, the inheritance of culture is presented in a way that is unique to the times in a particular era.
The smart skating chair, a white high-tech skating chair with a green handle, has been jointly developed by Dutch communications company KPN and other companies, which is specially developed for children to learn to skate. The skating chair is equipped with sensors and laser devices in several places to facilitate linear skating, while the skating chair can intelligently understand the ice rink and the user's situation, including detecting whether the balance is good and whether the skating action is correct, and then the skating chair uses built-in speakers to provide real-time skating tips and guidance.
Thanks to the special design of the legs, the children's skates will not be clipped behind, and these innovations make the children have fun learning to skate. Interestingly, its cue voice was recorded by Sven Kramer, one of the most successful skaters in Dutch history. Dutch children learn to skate from the beginning under the "guidance" of the world champion.
Sven Kramer, figure/ McSmit CC BY-SA 3.0 protocol
The Dutchman's innovative spirit also helped them to fly freer and freer on the ice, and the emergence of clutch skates is a typical example.
About half a century ago, Dutch biomechanic Gerrit Jan van Ingen Schenau discovered that speed skaters had to lift their fixed skates before their ankles and knees were fully extended, thus preventing the tip of the knife from slowing down on the ice surface.
In 1984, the engineer used springs and hinges in Amsterdam to make the heel of the skates lifted, allowing the athletes to fully stretch out, which led to the invention of the clutch skates.
By the 1990s, the ever-improving clutch skates were popularized by young speed skaters in the Netherlands and became widespread in the late 1990s.
Skates, photo/Authorized use by the Embassy of the Netherlands in China
For example, speed skaters need to test the resistance of skating, which includes the influence of wind, the quality of the ice, and the metal material used in skates. On the one hand, to ensure the safety of athletes in this high-speed sport, on the other hand, the difference of 0.1 seconds in the top competition is a world of difference.
Contestants, photo/David Rosen CC BY 2.0 agreement
Nando Timmer, an aerospace engineer at delft University of Technology's Wind Tunnel Laboratory, lifted a 5-centimeter-long zigzag band, a simple but revolutionary skating innovation.
Not long ago, he published a research report "The Effect of Serrated Tape Spoilers on Close-fitting Elastic Suits on Speed Skating Performance", applying his aeronautical science knowledge to athletes, and he found that the specific posture of the athlete's body and specific changes can reduce the turbulence of the air and the resistance formed, and integrate the technology of minimizing airflow with modern design.
Dutch companies and researchers have indeed provided assistance to athletes to achieve excellent results through advanced research and development technology, and this cooperation method is also reflected in the performance of Chinese athletes - China also invited professional teams to "dream linkage" with top athletes before the Tokyo Olympic Games.
On July 31, in the women's windsurfing RS: X competition at the Tokyo Olympic Games, China's Lu Yunxiu won the championship. Before the start of the competition, Zhu Qian, senior experimentalist of the School of Information Science and Engineering of Fudan University, and his team thoroughly grasped and analyzed the field environment and hydrological information, and provided scientific analysis and prediction to coaches and athletes.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="133" > sports competition without forgetting sustainable development</h1>
Dutch innovations are fueled not only by athletes' equipment, but also by Dutch sports venues.
In 2018, the Netherlands launched the National Sport initiative Sport unites the Netherlands, followed by several regional initiatives, underpinned by six pillars, including sustainable sports infrastructure.
It is said that the average distance between a Dutchman from his doorstep to the nearest sports facility is only more than 600 meters, and the sports infrastructure will be sustainable in the design and construction process.
Take, for example, the famous dutch indoor skating rink Thialf, which was built in 1966 and over time the venue facilities needed to be further refurbished to attract top-level events.
GEA, a global supplier of technology for food processing and many industrial sectors involved in the refurbishment, has proposed low-energy refrigeration solutions that ensure the highest performance factor (COP) while providing the best ice quality. The refurbished upgraded refrigeration system achieved energy savings of 52%, exceeding the original target of 50%.
In addition, ventilation systems are important for creating suitable skating conditions. Actiflow, a Dutch company of hydrodynamics engineers and experts, has conducted extensive research on this, and finally achieved the goal of maintaining low temperatures near the ice, while guaranteeing suitable conditions for athletes to compete (temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide content, etc.), as well as a comfortable viewing environment.
Dutch indoor skating rink Thialf, photo/Evelien1009 CC BY-SA 4.0 agreement
In addition to ice sports, the Dutch are probably most proud of the country's largest football stadium, the Johan Cruijff ArenA in Amsterdam, which has been "carbon neutral" for several years.
John Cruyff Arena, photo/Syrcro CC BY-SA 3.0 agreement
In addition, the arena encourages sports enthusiasts to travel green, if visitors come in electric vehicles, then the parking lot can also find a charging point; those who come by train can get discounts, and the escalator that transports people from one floor to another can use the energy obtained to generate electricity. About 80% of the lighting in the stadium is composed of energy-saving LED bulbs controlled by motion sensors, so it can be turned on and off as needed.
As Arena CEO Henk Markerink put it,
"The principle of balancing human health, the health of the planet and corporate profits must be part of our DNA and core values."
This concept was ahead of the world more than a decade ago.
For the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, it is particularly important to implement the concept of "green Olympic Games".
Last year, the Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee officially launched the "Low Carbon Winter Olympics" WeChat Mini Program version 1.0, through the carbon inclusive way, to attract the public to actively participate in low-carbon actions, to contribute to the low-carbon Winter Olympics, this year this mini program has also been upgraded, launched a new Bilingual model in Chinese and English, advocating the "blue sky punch card" action.
The Love of Ice and Snow Sports and the focus on the Green Olympics in China and the Netherlands also echo the theme slogan of the 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games – "Together for a Shared Future".
Let us look forward to the Athletes of all countries competing in the Field of the Winter Olympic Games, and also look forward to the world working together to move towards a better and greener future.