February 15, 2010 | number 5 The Dutch newspaper in Olympic Vancouver

Speed skaters Czech-mate

The Dutch Diane Valkenburg, Renate Groenewold and Ireen Wüst couldn’t surprise 4:02.53 the 22-year-old Sáblíková won her first gold medal. Wüst, the Olympic cham-
during the women 3.000 meter speed skating event. It was the Czech favorite Mar- pion in 2006, finished seventh. The silver went to the German Stephanie Beckert and
tina Sáblíková who left the rest of the field far behind. With a new track record of Canada’s own Clara Hughes took the bronze. Photo: ANP

Bilodeau gets
the job done
One day after Sven Kramer’s victory,
Canada had a reason to go wild as well.
Alexandre Bilodeau won the first gold
medal for Canada on home soil. Being
second after his first round, Bilodeau
took all the risk in the second round, and
finished with a winning 26.75 points.
The Vancouverite Dale Begg-Smith, who
participates under the flag of Australia,
settled for the silver medal. Photo: ANP
 2 The Daily Dutch International
Gold and silver for
German lugers
With great show of force, Felix Loch won the
first gold medal for Germany at the luge event.
Loch finished first in all four runs, in an event
that was shaded by the death of the Gregorian
Nodar Kumaritashvili at the Wistler Sliding
Centre last Friday. Loch’s fellow countryman
David Moeller took the silver medal, more than
half a second behind the winner. The Italian
Armin Zoeggeler finished in third place.
No competition for
Nabeev and Kokk
The Russian Niyaz Nabeev and the Estonian
Kaspar Kokk are not allowed to be part of the
Olympics for five days. Pre game tests showed
that both athletes’ hemoglobin levels were to
high. The start prohibitions are designed to
protect the health of the athletes, and should
not be considered to be sanctions. Nabeev
would participate in Nordic combined event
yesterday, but wasn’t present at the race. Kokk
is ineligible for the first cross-country race.
Chinese duo leads
After the short program at the figure skating
event, it looks like China holds two aces. Shen
Xue and Zhao Hongbo are in first place with
the world’s best score ever for their perfor-
mance. Jessica Dubé and Bryce Davison are the
best Canadian pair, being in sixth place.
Programme
Today
8.30 pm - De Coronas
9.45 pm - DJ Ronald
10.30pm - Nick en Simon
11.30pm - DJ until closing time (2.00 am)
Tomorrow
9.00 am - Holland Heineken House
8.30 pm - De Coronas
9.45 pm - DJ Ronald
10.30 pm - Jan Smit
11.30 pm - DJ until closing time (2.00 am)
Colophon The Daily Dutch
Tobias Bos, Pim Brassien, Twan Clarijs, Richard
Geeve, Marlot Hak, Paul de Lange (coordinator),
Rens Lieman, Gert-Jan Peddemors (coordinator),
Marjolein Reezigt (lay-out), Ingrid van Rooijen,
Femke van der Veen, Mathijs Vuister (editor).
The international edition of The Daily Dutch is made by
students from the School of Journalism in Utrecht,
The Netherlands
Canadians fall for
Dutch cuisine
There is no maple syrup, beef jerky or Nanaimo
bars in the Holland Heineken House food sec-
tion. Canadians have to get used to Dutch food.
To select the best dishes, The Daily Dutch pro-
moted locals Andy Rush and Doug Smith to the
official Canadian tasting team.
By Mathijs Vuister
Dish one: Potato-kale hotschpotsch with sausage
Doug: “This food really sticks to your ribs. I under-
stand why you guys eat this during wintertime in the
Netherlands. It makes you feel satisfied right away.
The only thing I’m not really fond of, are those pie-
ces of bacon on the top. They are very crunchy. I do
like the dish, but I would like to give one suggestion
to the chefs of the Holland Heineken House. Put
some vinegar on top of the hotschpotsch. It should
taste even better than it does now already.”
Dish two: Potato-carrot hotschpotsch with
sausage
Andy: “I definitely like the smell of this food. It’s
even terrific. But I don’t really understand how
Moment of truth
Annette Gerritsen
After a disappointing ’08/’09 season, this
year speed skater Annette Gerritsen is
doing just fine.The 24 year old won the
Dutch national sprint championship, skated
to some good results during the world cup
and is ready for her first Olympic event this
year: the 500 meter race.
By Femke van der Veen
It was no surprise that the girl from Ilpendam
started speed skating at a young age. Her little
brother Albert Jan and sister Anja also participa-
ted in speed skating races regularly. The three have
a strong sense of family together. When Annette
doesn’t have to skate, she will observe the races
of Anja and Albert Jan. But with her career rising,
Annette is less able to see their laps on the ice.
Already at the age of twenty, Gerritsen made her
debut at the Olympics. On the Oval Lingotto in
Turin ‘06 she made two appearances but couldn’t
finish in the top ten, finishing 12th in the 500
meter and 23rd in the 1.000 meter race.
About those races, Gerritsen says today: “At that
particular moment, the 12th spot was a pretty
good result for me. I just want to forget my awful
you’re able to get hotschpotsch so juicy. It looks
like you added cheese to the dish, but I don’t taste
it. No, I can’t really put my finger on it. This food
has a lot of similarities with a dish we Canadians
make with mashed potatoes and gravy. We would
add mushrooms to the dish. You Dutch should try
it some time.”
Dish 3: The Dutch Kroket
Andy: “Wow, this tastes even better than my hot-
schpotsch. The only thing: it makes you feel full
pretty quickly. I would love to eat these krokets, but
I would eat them every single day. They are like a
treat; just eat them sometimes.”
Doug: “I agree. The filling has a good smell too.
The only problem is that you guys are only here for
the Olympics, so unfortunately we have to see the
krokets go in March.”
The final verdict from the Canadian tasting team
(scale 1 to 10)
Potato-kale hotschpotsch: 8
Potato-carrot hotschpotsch: 8.5
Kroket: 9
Photo: ANP
1.000 meter race. That was one of my worst
races ever.” But now, on the biggest stage of them
all, Gerritsen has learned quickly how to handle
the pressure. With several podium finishes at the
world cup, she showed she’s ready to compete
for a medal in the Richmond Olympic Oval. Next
to the 500 meter, she will participate in the 1.000
and 1.500 meter event.
Gerritsen: “I’m really looking forward to my three
races. I think these Olympics will be very well
organized. Secondly, I think Canada is a beautiful
country. I’ve been in Vancouver last year, but
unfortunately I won’t be able to see lots of the
city. I have to focus on my races. So that’s what
I’m gonna do.”