New thread since these thoughts now have had time to mature based on feedback and own musings. To ensure growth and prosperity in the future, enlarging the interest in the sport World Wide, certain amendments in the recent structure are needed. Proposal. WC1-4: Single distances as now. Qualification EC, 4CC, singel distances: personal qualification, and personal spots based on total World Cup points earned during World Cup 1-4. If the total quotas per distance and/or reserve spots are not filled in this way, places based on personal times achieved in approved International Competitions added. For EC: races committed in Europe. Those (possible) spots are ranked below quota places that have been secured via World Cup 1-4. Qualification EC, allround and sprint: Personal spots based on the combination of the best 1500+5,000 (3,000 women) respectively 500+1000. Results achieved from lowland events during WC1-4, with the addition of results from approved International Competitions in Europe. EC and 4CC: European Championchips Week plus 4CC (single distances) just before Christmas. EC-Week: Saturday: Sprint Day 1. 5k, men and 3k women single distances. Sunday: Sprint Day 2. Team Pursuit men and women. Monday: rest Tuesday: rest Wednesday: 1500m, men and women Thursday: Mass Start men and women, 1000m, men and women Friday: rest Saturday: Allround Day 1. 500m men and women. Sunday: Allround Day 2. TS men and women One single venue. (Unfortunately no room for the single distances 10k, men and 5k, women). WC 5-7: Single distances as now. World Championships qualification, single distances: The four World Cup events before Christmas decide nation quotas in A in the first race for the distance concerned, as well as World Cup quotas in total in the second half. What applies during WC5-7 are personal qualification for the World Championships. Only qualification on points. Total World Cup points during WC5-7. (WC7 being the World Cup final with A- and B-groups as usual). The Netherlands as an example: NK Afstanden ahead of WC5 determines who will go to the World Cup and fight for World Championship Spots. The best skaters in the NK occupy the number of places they have on the distance in question in A during the first race. Internal and external World Championship qualification via WC5-7. Such a «twist» can imply that some skaters who have done well in the World Cup before Christmas have to start in B during the first race after, or do not qualify for the second half of the World Cup. World Championships qualification, allround and sprint: Personal spots based on the combination of the best 1500+5,000 (3,000 women), respectively 500+1000. Results achieved during WC 5-7, with the addition of results from approved International Competitions in those cases that the skaters are not qualified for WC5-7 for their country on both distances concerned — just the one of them. Times noted outside WC5-7 only added in those cases when the skater doesnt compete in the World Cup on that distance. To be able to participate in the allround or sprint Worlds, one have to have participated in at least one of the distances concerned during WC 5-7. World Championships: World Championship-«week» at the end of February, beginning of March. Saturday: Sprint Day 1. 10k, men single distance. Sunday: Sprint Day 2. 5k women single distance. Monday: rest Tuesday:rest Wednesday:rest Thursday: rest Friday:rest Saturday: 5k men, 3k women, 1500m, men and women. Sunday: Mass start men and women, 1000m men and 1000m women. Monday: rest Tuesday: rest Wednesday: rest Thursday: Team Pursuit men and women, 500m men and women. Friday: rest Saturday: Allround Day1. Team sprint men Sunday: Allround Day2. Team sprint, women. The World Championship-«week» has two different organisers. (if possible, even on two different continents: Enough time?) One who takes care of the first weekend, another who takes care of the rest. The distribution of events are meant to in the greatest possible way to ensure that skaters are not forced to prioritize one over the other. At the same time the program cannot be too scattered. This is not the Olympics with a lot of other things going on. Action and variation. There is a flexibility in the setup decribed, that makes it possible to have the World Cup final and the first World Championship weekend held on the same venue/in the same country. In a similar manner, WC4 can be combined with 4CC. Medal overview and promotion of the whole thing as ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS. The non-traditional mix between samalogs and single distances reinforces the feeling that you are not halfway through the Worlds when the first weekend is over, while the first weekend is still full enough. I envision a qualification that is mainly personal, and mainly goes through the World Cup — World Cup points in total over 3-4 events. In order to sharpen the internal- and external qualification, a system is used where, for example, in the end you have to have three skaters in the top 12 total classification in order to get three spots in the relevant class. To get two, you must have two in the top 16 (in the european Championships: both on points). The rest is filled in with sole skaters. You should then have an opportunity to use internal reserves if these are in a position on the qualification list that allows them to. If not, the place goes to an external reserve. I imagine that each skater per distance during the EC and WC qualification is entitled to one «Wild Card», or «reskate»-card if you like. This is to limit damage in the event of pure accidents such as falls, DQs etc. Right to have another go. There will be some extra races with such an arrangement. At the same time I imagine that one will only choose to use the opportunity in absolutely necessary cases. One could also consider to simplify the relegation rules as a consequence of this use of «Wild Cards». Bottom three i A-races relegated.
According to some canadian speed skaters with inside information, there will be world cup in SLC in December next season. Which would be great! It is not official decided yet, but it probably will be world cup in SLC in December.
The skaters will already head to North America in february - the World Single Distance Champions 2024 are in Calgary
https://www.isu.org/events/eventdetail/13006/-/isu-european-speed-skating-championships Op de ISU site zelf staat niet dat het EK 2024 in Heerenveen is. Maar onverwacht vind ik het niet. Goed dat ze nu het EK organiseren, want komend jaar mogen buitenlanders nog wel in Heerenveen trainen.
Ik hoop dan dat ze wat betreft de World Cups Heerenveen overslaan dit jaar. Een tripje Azië en Noord Amerika lijken al bijna zeker, dus dan hoop ik op nog een WB in Noorwegen, Italië en/of Duitsland..
Die kans lijkt me niet zo groot want het is sinds seizoen 85-86 niet meer voorgekomen dat Heerenveen geen world cup heeft.
(Back to the model!) Allround qualification (especially for men): I assume that one can question an internal and external allround qualification based on the combination 1500+5000: Many allrounders have their strenght in that "area", but not everyone. If one was to include 10k (and even 500m) in the qualification basis, it starts to get too complicated and contrary to the purpose, and I would rather prefer to stick to fights for national quotas in that class.
So EK 2024, Heerenveen: The following suggestion would have been an interesting experiment that could have yielded several interesting answers: Saturday 6th: Sprint Day 1. 5k, men and 3k women SD. Sunday 7th: Sprint Day 2. Team Pursuit men and women. Monday: rest Tuesday: rest Wednesday: 1500m, men and women Thursday: Mass Start men and women, 1000m, men and women Friday: rest Saturday 13th: Allround Day 1. 500m men and women. Sunday 14: Allround Day 2. TS men and women
