As the world's media has remained focussed on the conclusion of the London 2012 games, it has been announced that the city of Arnhem in The Netherlands will host the 2022 Winter Olympics.
The bid by The Netherlands came as a surprise to many, given that around 20% of the country is below sea level, whilst 50% lies at one metre above sea level. There is the Dutch Peak District, just to the north east of Arnhem, with Mount Hartog reaching a height of a little over 4 metres.
Chairman of the Olympic Organising Committee, Willem Van Winkle, told us, "The Netherlands has always been at a disadvantage when it comes to winter sports. However, from ice skating on the frozen polders, to remaining stationary on a pair of skis. We love it!"
Mr Van Winkle went on to say, "It is quite simple really. All events which require a steep, downhill course will be held in Switzerland, where they are not short of mountains. We will host the figure skating and the bobsleigh. We have designed an excellent bobsleigh course, which will follow the streets around central Arnhem. The only difference will be that the bobsleigh teams will have to push the bob for the entire length of the course".
It is expected that the USA, Canada and one or two other mountainous countries might contest the decision to award the games to Arnhem.
