Popular sports in Friesland inclued cycling, sailing, canoeing, and ice skating. Friesland is also home to the famous Elfstedentocht skating race, held once every five or six years, when it is cold enough for all the regions canals to freeze over.
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As many as 20,000 people skate a 125-mile course over the frozen canals connecting Frisland's eleven towns. Another traditional sport popular in Friesland is firlieppen, pole-vaulting across the canals in the warmer months.
