{{Short description|Dutch speedskater (1931–2021)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}} {{Infobox person | name = Reinier Paping | image = Reinier Paping (cropped).jpg | alt = <!-- descriptive text for use by speech synthesis (text-to-speech) software --> | caption = Paping in 1963 | birth_name = <!-- only use if different from name --> | birth_date = {{Birth date|1931|02|18|df=y}} | birth_place = Dedemsvaart, Netherlands | death_date = {{Death date and age|2021|12|20|1931|02|18|df=y}} | death_place = | other_names = | occupation = speedskater | years_active = | known_for = 1963 winner, Elfstedentocht | notable_works = }} '''Reinier Paping''' (18 February 1931 – 20 December 2021) was a Dutch speedskater primarily known as the winner of the Elfstedentocht of 1963. This Elfstedentocht became known as "The hell of '63" when only 69 of the 9,292 contestants<ref>{{Cite web|title=De vergeten rijders van 1963|url=https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2013/01/04/de-vergeten-rijders-van-1963-12598839-a676333|access-date=5 February 2021|website=NRC|language=nl}}</ref> were able to finish the race, due to the extremely low temperatures, dipping to −18 °C, and a harsh eastern wind. After winning the race, he was recognized as a national hero in the Netherlands.
==Early life and career== Paping was born in Dedemsvaart on 18 February 1931. Before 1963, Paping had participated in several Dutch allround championships, with a 4th place in 1955 as his best result.
===The 1963 Elfstedentocht=== Not even halfway through the harsh Elfstedentocht of 18 January 1963, Paping skated away from a leading group with Jeen van den Berg, Anton Verhoeven, and Jan Uitham, and travelled the rest of the trip alone. Paping finished the race in ten hours and 59 minutes, while the second-place finisher, Jan Uitham, arrived a full 22 minutes later. Because of the horrendous conditions—which included bone-chilling cold of −18 °C—his long solo escape, and the fact that the next Elfstedentocht was not held until 22 years later, Paping became a national hero and the tour itself legendary.<ref>{{cite web|url = http://geschiedenis.vpro.nl/artikelen/39075940/|title = Alles van de Elfstedentocht 1963|language = Dutch|trans-title = All about the Elfstedentocht 1963|publisher = Sportgeschiedenis.nl|accessdate = 24 December 2010|archive-date = 4 December 2009|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091204040134/http://geschiedenis.vpro.nl/artikelen/39075940/|url-status = dead}}</ref>
==Death== Paping died on 20 December 2021, at age 90.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-12-20 |title=Schaatslegende Paping (90) overleden, winnaar zwaarste tocht der tochten |url=https://nos.nl/artikel/2410310-schaatslegende-paping-90-overleden-winnaar-zwaarste-tocht-der-tochten |access-date=2025-09-10 |website=nos.nl |language=nl}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{elfstedentocht}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paping, Reinier}} Category:1931 births Category:2021 deaths Category:Dutch male speed skaters Category:People from Avereest Category:Sportspeople from Overijssel Category:20th-century Dutch sportsmen