The Dodentocht (Dutch for Death March) is a long-distance march of 100 kilometers organized annually since 1970 in Bornem, Belgium. The grueling march [1] derives its name from its length. Each year since 2009, the event has attracted over 10,000 participants. A scouting group also organises a campsite for the participants, which can hold 500 people. [2]
The Dodentocht has become one of the most important hiking events in Europe. It began in 1970 with 65 participants and has since grown into an event with up to 13,000 hikers. Marchers have come from many countries, including the United States, [3] the United Kingdom [1] and Germany. [4]
The Dodentocht is organised by the non profit organisation 100 km Dodentocht® Kadee Bornem. Approximately 600 members of the organisation are involved during the event itself. During the 2012 edition, marchers were followed on the official site via a tracking system, utilizing small RFID tags on badges worn on their clothing that are automatically scanned at each of the 15 checkpoints and at additional random points along the route. [5] Many of the marchers return year after year; in 2019 Hugo Bonnyns finished the march for the 48th time, the current record. [6]
The organizers have adopted a motto, "Walking for a better world"; many of the participants walk for charities. [1] [7]
Since the course is closed for non-participants, some of the churches along the route have been forced to reschedule church services; [8] the pastor of the local federation of churches, Pastor Maervoet, participated in the march in 2009, for the fifth time. [9]
Local companies that support the event have led to some unique features. The route passes through the premises of several companies. These include, at 15 km, the factory of a popular sports drink, at 40 km, the Duvel brewery in Breendonk – with free beer for all walkers.
On August 14, 2010, a walker collapsed 300 meters short of the finish line and died from cardiac arrest. The walker had already walked the Dodentocht 5 times and was properly trained. The event was not cancelled, but the festivities celebrating the arrival of the last walkers did not take place.
Since 2018 a limit has been set on the number of participants. The number became too large and the organization wanted to be able to continue to guarantee proper functioning of the event. In 2019 the 13,000 places were sold in a matter of hours.
In the days leading up to the 53rd Dodentocht in August 2022, it was announced by the organisers, at the request of the Belgium government, that the event would not continue in its current format due to the ongoing heatwave at the time. In response, the length of the route was reduced by approximately a 1/3 to 63.6km to be completed by 1pm the following day. All participants who successfully completed the shortened route received the Dodentocht medal and diploma.
There are no rankings or records. If a walker completes the route in under 24 hours then they are awarded a certificate confirming their timings, a medal, badge and a large gingerbread.
| Edition | Year | Participants |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1970 | 65 |
| 2 | 1971 | 202 |
| 3 | 1972 | 397 |
| 4 | 1973 | 782 |
| 5 | 1974 | 1,047 |
| 6 | 1975 | 1,408 |
| 7 | 1976 | 1,844 |
| 8 | 1977 | 2,057 |
| 9 | 1978 | 2,102 |
| 10 | 1979 | 2,487 |
| 11 | 1980 | 2,508 |
| 12 | 1981 | 2,848 |
| 13 | 1982 | 3,136 |
| 14 | 1983 | 3,208 |
| 15 | 1984 | 3,125 |
| 16 | 1985 | 3,828 |
| 17 | 1986 | 3,920 |
| 18 | 1987 | 4,518 |
| 19 | 1988 | 4,567 |
| 20 | 1989 | 4,761 |
| 21 | 1990 | 4,366 |
| 22 | 1991 | 4,930 |
| 23 | 1992 | 5,084 |
| 24 | 1993 | 5,091 |
| 25 | 1994 | 5,203 |
| 26 | 1995 | 4,826 |
| 27 | 1996 | 4,967 |
| 28 | 1997 | 5,509 |
| 29 | 1998 | 5,310 |
| 30 | 1999 | 6,644 |
| 31 | 2000 | 7,096 |
| 32 | 2001 | 8,053 |
| 33 | 2002 | 8,131 |
| 34 | 2003 | 8,717 |
| 35 | 2004 | 9,033 |
| 36 | 2005 | 8,595 |
| 37 | 2006 | 8,413 |
| 38 | 2007 | 8,958 |
| 39 | 2008 | 9,597 |
| 40 | 2009 | 10,793 |
| 41 | 2010 | 10,605 |
| 42 | 2011 | 10,507 |
| 43 | 2012 | 10,957 |
| 44 | 2013 | 11,157 |
| 45 | 2014 | 11,861 |
| 46 | 2015 | 12,017 |
| 47 | 2016 | 12,608 |
| 48 | 2017 | 13,952 |
| 49 | 2018 | 11,752 |
| 50 | 2019 | 13,045 |
| 51 | 2020 | 0 – Cancelled due to COVID-19 Pandemic |
| 52 | 2021 | 0 – Cancelled due to COVID-19 Pandemic |
| 53 | 2022 | 10,438 – Route shortened to 63.6km due to heatwave |
| 54 | 2023 | 11,500 – approx 8,000 reached finish |
The Elfstedentocht is a long-distance tour skating event on natural ice, almost 200 kilometres (120 mi) long, which is held both as a speed skating competition and a leisure tour. The Elfstedentocht is the biggest ice-skating tour in the world.
The Tour of Flanders, also known as De Ronde, is an annual road cycling race held in Belgium every spring. The most important cycling race in Flanders, it is part of the UCI World Tour and organized by Flanders Classics. Its nickname is Vlaanderens Mooiste. First held in 1913, the Tour of Flanders had its 100th edition in 2016.
Belgium has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 64 times since making its debut as one of seven countries at the first contest in 1956. The only countries with the same number or more appearances are Germany (66), France (65) and the United Kingdom (65). Belgium have been absent only three times in total, in 1994, 1997 and 2001, due to low scores in the previous contests that relegated them from the contest. Belgium has won the contest once, in 1986.
The International Four Day Marches Nijmegen is the largest multiple day marching event in the world. It is organised every year in Nijmegen, Netherlands in mid-July as a means of promoting sport and exercise. Participants walk 30 km (19 mi), 40 km (25 mi) or 50 km (31 mi) daily, depending on their age and gender and, on completion, receive a royally approved medal (Vierdaagsekruis). The participants are mostly civilians, but there are also a few thousand military participants. Military participants' distance is 40 km, in uniform, carrying at least 10 kg (22 lb) marching weight for men aged 18–49; for women, the weight is optional.
Jacky Lafon is a Flemish actress known for playing one of the lead fictional characters—Rita Van den Bossche—in the television series Familie that aired its first episode on the Flemish television channel VTM, in the Dutch language, on 30 December 1991. Familie remains a popular soap opera, airing its 1,000th episode in 1996 and as of 2016 is in its 25th year of production.
The Miss Belgium is a national beauty pageant in Belgium. The winner of Miss Belgium automatically represents her country at the Miss World and Miss Universe pageants if the dates do not overlap.
The Arnhem–Veenendaal Classic is a semi classic professional road cycling race in the Netherlands starting and finishing in the town of Veenendaal. The event is part of the UCI Europe Tour calendar of events with a ranking of 1.1.
Josephus Gerardus Dominicus "Sef" Vergoossen is a former Dutch football manager.
Faris Haroun is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He has also played for the Belgium national team.
Hervé Anselme Ndjana Onana is a Cameroonian footballer who plays as a striker for Belgian club FC Mariekerke.
Belgium participated at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Me and My Guitar" written by Tom Dice, Jeroen Swinnen and Ashley Hicklin. The song was performed by Tom Dice, who was internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) in November 2009 to represent the nation at the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway. The song, "Me and My Guitar", was presented to the public on 7 March 2010 during the television special Eurosong 2010: een song voor Tom Dice!.
Voetbalvereniging Noordwijk is a Dutch football club founded in 1933, based in Noordwijk. It currently competes in the Tweede Divisie.
Denis Frimpong Odoi is a professional footballer who plays for Belgian First Division A side Club Brugge. A right-footed full-back who can play on both sides, he is nicknamed the Professor because of his maturity and discipline on the field of play. Born in Belgium, and a one-time representative of the Belgium national team, he represents the Ghana national team.
The Hasselt – Maastricht tramway was a proposed light rail system linking Hasselt, Belgian province of Limburg and Maastricht, Dutch province of Limburg. The project was part of the Spartacusplan of Belgian Limburg, proposed by the Belgian transport company De Lijn, with the aim of improving the province's transport links. The tramway's opening was originally scheduled for 2017, then postponed until 2025. It was finally cancelled on 10 June 2022 in favour of an electric "trambus".
The Belgian Women's Super League is the highest women's football league in Belgium. It was created in 2015 after the BeNe League, a joint league for Belgium and the Netherlands, folded after the 2014–15 season.
F.C. De Kampioenen is a Belgian comic strip created by Hec Leemans since 1997 and published by Standaard Uitgeverij. The comics series is based on the television sitcom comedy series of the same name on Flemish television. The series ran for 94 albums with numerous special versions and editions.
Els Pelgrom, pseudonym of Else Koch, is a Dutch writer of children's literature. Pelgrom is the only author to have received the Gouden Griffel award three times.
We Are Here is a collective of migrants based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, which campaigns for human rights for its members and all undocumented migrants. The asylum seekers have in many cases had their applications to remain in the Netherlands denied but they either cannot go back or refuse to return to their country of origin. They demand access to social services such as medical care and housing. The group formed in 2012 and by 2015 contained over 200 migrants from around 15 countries.
Anja Daems is a Belgian radio presenter and television host.
Bernard Dewulf was a Belgian poet and journalist. He died in Antwerp on 23 December 2021, at the age of 61.
Belgian municipality Bornem | |
|---|---|
| Deelgemeentes | |
| Buildings and sights | |
