The SUP 11 City Tour (or simply the “11 Cities”) is a five-day stage race held annually in the Netherlands. Covering more than 200km, the SUP 11 City Tour is one of the longest and toughest stand up paddle board races in the world…
This year’s SUP11-City Tour was extra-special for a couple of reasons. For one, it very nearly didn’t happen. An event as logistically-complex as this (10 days across half a dozen locations) was always going to be prone to cancellation in the year of Covid. But organisers somehow pulled it off to ensure one of the longest-running (and longest, period) races in the sport continued its 12-year history.
The other reason was the media output. → READ MORE
Click here for the FULL TIMES from all days, all divisions, all participants
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Full results on Race Splitter
Click here to watch the full video recap of stage three
Follow @sup11citytour on Instagram for behind-the-scenes Stories
In brief: Bruno Hasulyo added another minute and a half to his 10-minute lead after a great arm wrestle with Joep van Bakel during the individual time trial on day three of the SUP11-City Tour. The two front-runners set a cracking pace as light winds made for easy paddling conditions. The duo paddled side-by-side after the break to finish before a sprint to the finish saw Bruno get yet another stage win by less than a board length.
Mild weather and a merciful lack of rain once again greeted paddlers on “hump day” of the 12th Annual 11 Cities, which took the flotilla from the west Frisian “city” of Workum up north to the finish line in Franeker.
Petronella van Malsen was once again too strong for Germany’s Tanja Ecker and local lass Wietske Kuipers to tighten Team Mistral’s grip on the title.
For the top paddlers, day three was split between the 12km time trial followed by a standard 29km group stage to Franeker (the bulk of the paddlers completed the 41km voyage as a standard stage).
Results from stage three (time trial results not included — we’ll post those separately in the morning)
After two stages and almost 100km of rollercoaster weather in the Dutch province of Friesland, Bruno Hasulyo has cemented his lead in the 12th Annual SUP11-City Tour as he vies for a record-equaling fourth title. Bruno paddled side-by-side with his main rival, Joep van Bakel, on a beautiful second stage to protect his 10-minute advantage from day one. The two main contenders crossed the line tied for the stage win after 4 hours, 49 minutes and 45km of flat water paddling. Swiss darkhorse Alain Luck was third once again.
Home-nation hero Petronella van Malsen once again saluted in the women’s division, gaining an extra nine minutes on Germany’s Tanja Ecker to give Team Mistral a near-unbeatable edge of 14 minutes overall. Petronella crossed the line after 5 hours and 25 minutes. → READ MORE
In brief: Bruno Hasulyo has thrown down the gauntlet in his quest for a 4th 11 Cities title, an achievement that would put him on par with Bart de Zwart as the most successful athlete in the event’s illustrious, 12-year history. Bruno outpaced the dangerous Dutchman Joep van Bakel in today’s opening stage from Leeuwarden to Sloten. Swiss darkhorse Alain Luck finished third not too far off the pace. Petronella van Malsen dominated the women’s field. → READ MORE
This photo pretty much sums up the “Non-Stop” SUP11-City Tour: A long, flat and rather lonely journey through Dutch countryside that some describe as beautiful, others as boring (I sit firmly with the former). But what everyone can agree upon is that it’s an epic paddle requiring extreme mental strength to master.
There’s no drafting in the non-stop. However, with a distance of just over 200km and finishing times between 24 and 36 hours, there is certainly plenty of time to think. These ultra events are far more of a mental challenge than a physical one — your mind is often screaming at you to quit long before your body starts to falter. → READ MORE
