Canal skateway isn't just the longest -- it's the largest in world, NCC claims
 
Forget being the longest skating rink in the world -- the National Capital Commission now claims the Rideau Canal is also the largest.

In a bid to secure Ottawa a spot in the Guinness Book of Records, the NCC carted out some cutting edge global positioning system 
equipment earlier this week to precisely measure the skating surface of the Rideau Canal.

The equipment, which was attached to a truck that drove along the canal's skateway, uses satellite technology to map geographical boundaries.

What the NCC's measurements revealed is that not only is the canal "at least 7.8 kilometres" in length, but it is also 165,621 
square metres in size, comparable to the ice surfaces of about 90 Olympic-sized hockey rinks.

The measurement would seem to suggest that the skateway dwarfs the current titleholder in the Guinness category of "
world's largest ice rink". The Moscow Olympic Arena is a mere 8,064 square metres -- or about four times the size of a 
standard hockey rink.

"We've never looked at how large it (the canal) is," said NCC spokeswoman Laurie Peters. "We're hoping we can say 
that not only is it the world's longest skating surface, but the world's largest as well."

The Guinness Book of Records does not have a category for the world's longest skating rink.

Ms. Peters submitted the GPS results the Guinness organization this week in hopes of obtaining a new record category, 
naming the Rideau Canal the largest maintained outdoor skating rink in the world. She also asked Guinness to look into 
whether the canal can claim the title of being the world's longest skating rink.

She said a Guinness representative replied and said someone will be in touch within six weeks for further documentation.