 Alternative versions of this famous event are sometimes held abroad, e.g., in Finland and Canada.In cold winters in the Netherlands, a "National championship" skating marathon on natural ice is organized if it meets the minimum requirement of 12-centimetre thickness.For the first time in 13 years, a Dutch championship ice-skating marathon on natural ice was held in January 2009, in the Oostvaardersplassen wetland near Lelystad in the province of Flevoland, an area of land reclaimed in the 1960s.