The weekend’s strong winds and snow have probably put paid to hopes of staging the classic 200 km Elfstedentocht skating race, Nos television reports on Monday.

The wind and snow have created patches of weak ice and most bridges are now free of ice altogether, local experts told the broadcaster.

‘I am very, very disappointed,’ Auke Hylkema, said. ‘The way things are now, we can’t do anything. We had wonderful ice but now it can start all over again.

Tour

Nevertheless, the first organised tour is set to take place in Overijssel on Friday over routes of 15 and 35 km.

Ice club Blokzijl has applied for official permission to stage the tours with the Dutch skating organisation KNSB.

‘The snow can still cause us problems, but if the freeze continues, it will go ahead,’ club spokesman Marco Gorte told RTL news.