At Milan-Cortina 2026, stars like Jutta Leerdam (gold & Olympic record in the 1000 m), Femke Kok (500 m gold), Xandra Velzeboer (multiple short track titles) and Jens van ‘t Wout (several short track golds + relay gold) all helped rewrite the record books.
You might find it hilarious: a tiny small country tops the medal table at the Winter Olympics, finishing third overall with 10 golds and 20 total medals (its best result ever). And all of them? In speed skating. What’s happening? Here’s the Dutch secret sauce.
Ice Skating Is Dutch DNA (Literally)
Imagine a landscape dotted with canals that in the past used to freeze every winter. Long before indoor rinks, Dutch kids skated everywhere, on every small frozen ‘sloot’, canal and lake. That tradition stuck due to warmer Winters. So, how about the Dutch Ice Skating DNA?
Flat Country, Strong Legs — Thank the Wind
Here’s the funny part: How do you get strong legs? How do you train your muscles? The Netherlands has zero mountains, but it does have wind. Lots of it. Cycling into that wind daily is like free resistance training. Dutch kids pedal to school regardless of weather, so by the time they’re teens, they’ve unknowingly built tyrannosaurus-strong calf muscles and mental endurance.
When these cyclists (who doubled as ice skaters) hit the ice, they bring the stamina of a Tour de France rider with the balance of someone dodging pigeons on a canal bike path. It’s an unconventional training regime, but it works.
Ice Halls & Infrastructure — Not Just Tradition
Sure, tradition matters. But the Dutch didn’t depend on nature alone. They built indoor rinks all over the country decades ago, including world-class facilities like Thialf in Heerenveen. These let athletes train year-round, no matter how mild the winter.
This combination of history, culture, and infrastructure creates a pipeline of talent. Skate young, train smart, and don’t worry about climbing hills, the wind is the hill.
From Canal Frozen Fun to Olympic Fame
The Dutch success is part grit, part culture, part rain-boots-into-ice-blades logic. They took every day cycling struggles and turned them into an Olympic medal machine. And that’s the charm: a flat country that skates in the hearts of its people and on the medal podium.
If you’re an expat in the Netherlands, whether you’re learning Dutch, learning to skate, or just trying not to fall flat on your face, remember this: the wind here doesn’t just push bikes back, it trains champions forward.
