Coming weekend, the World Allround Championships will take place in Heerenveen (NED). During these days, we aim to offer you quotes and newsfacts directly from the location. Other information and live results can be found on the organiser's website . 

In Celebration of 125 years KNSB (Royal Dutch Skating Union), the Championships will be a three-day party. There will be an opening Ceremony at 16.30 on Friday February 9, before the 500m races for men and ladies, and the 5000m for men. See below:

Tamara Llorens skated the first ever female Argentinian records over 1500 and 3000 metres in Milwaukee last weekend.

The times: 2:21.36 and a very good 4:46.82.

It seemed with the greatest ease that Sven Kramer won the 5000m.  You can read more below on the first half, but after the ice preparation, Arne Dankers was the first to impress, with 6:27.14 he kept a schedule of 30 second laps, which Grødum couldn't follow after he was overtaken by Dankers just after 3000m. In the next pair, the German Schneider kept close to his pb with an excellent race, 6.28:66. He kept Fabris for a long time behind him. After 4200m, Fabris was still behind the German, the first 3000m with flat 31 laps, then some 30 laps. But in the final two laps, Fabris skated almost like in the 1500m: two laps of 28.9 brought him to 6:26.22. Yes, he can accelerate at the end of a long race, too.

Then Verheijen was paired with Ervik, and left him behind. Still, Ervik's race was good with only 30 second laps. His 6:25.69 was faster than Fabris' time. But Verheijen was of a different kind. He had to, in order to secure a start at the World Single Distance Championships he had to beat Olde Heuvel's B-Division time. His laps were between 29.6 and 30.3, and he finished, controlled, in 6:18.52. Kramer in the last pair (I won't mention De Jong) went off fastest of all from the start, laps between 29.4 and 30.03(his final lap) didn't seem to cost any effort. He seemed to save himself, doing just what he had to do to win. 6:18.31 was indeed just enough for that.

Not only yesterday's trackrecord on the 1500m men tells us that the ice is good in Turin. It has been mentioned by skaters on Dutch tv. According to the commentator, it's harder, -7 degrees instead of -5 as during the Olympics. No Mark Messer here, but an Italian ice maker.

At least it was good enough for some personal bests to be improved.