Whether the 11-city skating race, the Elfstedentocht, goes ahead or not, several traditional outdoor races have been given the go-ahead. And the salt water of the Waddenzee is frozen, allowing people to walk across it.

The Ronde van Skarsterlân, the Veluwemeertocht, the Hollands Venetiëtocht and the three-day Ankeveen event are all due to be held in the next few days, according to the Natural Ice Classics association.
The 200 kilometres-long Merentocht through the province of Overijssel is still uncertain because the ice along the northern part of the course is not yet good enough and is rutted from the wind.
This part of the course borders on the part of the Elfstedentocht which is giving the organisers problems.
According to a Natural Ice Classics spokesman, it is very uncertain if the Merentocht will be held. ‘Two days of thaw is not so bad, but then it needs to freeze hard again. We still have a patch of thin ice across the width of the course,’ he told news site nu.nl.