The Nederlandse Loterij ISU World Short Track 2024 presented by Odido at Rotterdam Ahoy features the most sustainable temporary ice rink ever used for a world championship. This achievement is the result of collaboration among multiple partners dedicated to making the sport of speed skating more environmentally friendly.
Sustainability is also a hot topic in the world of speed skating, and the Royal Dutch Skating Federation (KNSB) is keen on taking the lead. Jeroen Kraaij, Commercial Director of KNSB, stated, “During a marketing sponsor trip to Seattle in 2022, where KNSB, Daikin, and Rotterdam Ahoy were present, we expressed the ambition to create the most sustainable temporary ice rink ever for the World Short Track Championships in 2024. Since then, more partners have joined the initiative, and it’s fantastic that we are actually going to achieve it. Ice rinks are major energy consumers, and our ambition is for them to be as CO2-neutral as possible in the future. This is essential to keep our sport accessible to skating enthusiasts. We invest a lot of time, energy, and resources in various projects with different partners to achieve this goal. The way we are constructing a temporary ice rink for the World Short Track Championships aligns perfectly with that vision.”
“We love large-scale and unique events, but we also feel a strong responsibility to actively contribute to the sustainability of sports and events. In almost every event we are involved in, both in front and behind the scenes, there are groundbreaking innovations and novelties in the sustainability domain. It’s wonderful that, through a collective effort of all technical parties, a breakthrough has now been achieved in making temporary ice rinks more sustainable,” said Willem Overdiep, representing TIG Sports. “Strict norms regarding CO2 emissions are included in environmental legislation and event policies of major cities. With this innovative approach, temporary ice rinks in city centers can continue to exist in the future. Based on the old method – using diesel generators – this was no longer sustainable.”
Energy Savings
As the proud main sponsor of KNSB, Daikin makes a significant operational contribution to this ambitious project. Edwin Hoogerwerf, Managing Director of Daikin Netherlands, mentioned, “Compared to the ice surface used at the World Short Track Championships in 2017, the current approach, aided by the application of our technology, achieves an energy saving of up to 85%.
After the previous championship, Rotterdam Ahoy has made significant strides in sustainability, including the use of green energy. We are proud that our event venue will soon host the most sustainable temporary ice rink ever,” said Arnaud Hordijk, Head of Entertainment & Sports at Ahoy.
Other involved partners include Ice-World, the company that globally installs energy-efficient aluminum ice rink systems, and MTD, which specializes in the installation and management of temporary (drinking) water and wastewater infrastructures.
