This is the user page of Maarten Odde de Bonniot. Welcome! Dutch-born Maarten Odde de Bonniot is the Project Manager of the Finnish Skating Union/ Finnish Speed Skating Association, Finse Schaatsbond - Suomen Luisteluliitto SLL-SLU/ www.luisteluliitto.fi), which is the official member of ISU (International Skating Union). His main responsibility is the Toerschaatsen (fin. Matka-ja kuntoluistelu) and the nature ice skating in Finland. Maarten is the contact person with the dutch KNSB. Odde de Bonniot is also the chairman ofthe Huguenot World Federation/F.H.M. Fédération Huguenote Mondiale ry

There are two different skating sports practised on the natural ice: 1. Dutch skating known as the schaatsen or toerschaatsen, originally from Holland. 2. Nordic skating, known as swedish långfärdsskridsko, which is developed in Sweden in the 1900´s.

Text below is taken from the official page of the F.Skating Union: In English Tour skating (dutch, holl.; toerschaatsen) - matkaluistelu

Tour skating is originating from the Netherlands where it has been practised on the natural ice of the canals and lakes. Some 1,5 million people even today are active in this popular and traditional skating - a national sport of the Netherlands. The Netherlands is also the home of Elfstedentocht, a 200 km distance skating race, which is running through 11 cities around Holland. The common skaters use dutch (toer) skates, which have long blades and competitors use mostly speedskates. The skating technic is same with the speedskating and rollerskating.

Tour skating in Finland is defined as skating on built and maintained natural ice tracks on lakes and sea. Tour skating is also practised on manmade and artificial oval ice tracks. Equiptment for common Tour skating are tourskates with long blades or other skates with long blades, such as speed- and marathonskates, which are commonly used in the Tour skating competitions. Some new and modern skateboot models (Multiskates) are also used in rollerskating and in cross-country skiing as skiing boots.

Tour skating in finland is mostly practised as a recreational and outdoor-sport type of skating. Its increasing popularity is creating more manmade natural ice tracks around the country yearly as well as increasing amount of Tour skating events such as skating marathons. It is estimated that there are already some tens of thousands tourskaters in Finland. Tour skating (matkaluistelu) is different skating sport than Nordic skating (retkiluistelu).

Nordic skating (dutch; nordic schaatsen) - retkiluistelu

Nordic skating is a recreational type of skating on free natural ice (lakes, sea) and practised in Nordic countries. Nordic skating was developed in Sweden to its own type of skating from the dutch skating (toerschaatsen).

Nordic skating is always practised on free natural ice in groups and under strict safety rules and equiptment. Nordic skating technic is up-style, long stroke v-style skating. Nordic skating equiptment consist

       Skiing-boots (telemark), new cross country skiing boots or strong recreation-style boots.
       long blades with bindings attached to boots.
       ice prods or ice claws
       ice pike or hansa pole
       throwing line
       rucksack with equiptment
       (skiing poles are commonly used)