The 10th Masters International Long Distance Races were held in Heerenveen on March 21th. There were 22 ladies and 58 men competing on the 3.000, 5.000 and 10.000 meters. Most of them were Masters, but on the 3K and 5K also a few Juniors were skating. Just like the Sprint competition this competition was also held under perfect conditions. There was good ice and most skaters skated a Seasons Best or a Personal Best. There were 2 Master records achieved. Sandra van Bijlert-Burgerhout (L35) skated on the 5K a Master record in 8.46,87. Wim Brand (M70) achieved a Master record on the 5K in 8.07,00. Especially on the 5K and 10K the times were very fast. Arjan Bakker (M50) was first on the 5K in 7.06,69. The winner of the 10K was Klaas Poepjes (M40) in 15.15,72.
Also the number of foreign skaters on the Long Distance Races was a little bit disappointing. There were 2 ladies (1 from Finland and 1 from Germany) and 6 men (2 from Finland, 1 from Russia, 1 from Germany and 2 from Norway). The organization hopes that there will be more foreign competitors next year.
There was a special performance from John Gausla from Norway. The last 8 years he was in Heerenveen during the Masters International Long Distance Races and since 1989 he skated 39 times a 10K!!!
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