Open Water Swimming News & Views

Ger Kennedy , known as Dr. Ice , was formally honored with a Guinness World Record for his achievement of the Ice Sevens . The Ice Sevens Challenge is the ice swimming equivalent of the Oceans Seven - that takes extreme to an entirely different level. To achieve the Ice Sevens, a swimmer must complete an Ice Mile under standard ice swimming rules (i.e., no wetsuit and no neoprene hat in water below 5ºC) in seven locations. The swims must be ratified or recognized by the International Ice Swimming Association . o An Ice Mile swum below 5ºC (41ºF) in any location in Europe o An Ice Mile swum below 5ºC (41ºF) in any location in Oceania o An Ice Mile swum below 5ºC (41ºF) in any location in Asia o An Ice Mile swum below 5ºC (41ºF) in any location in North America o An Ice Mile swum below 5ºC (41ºF) in any location in Africa o An Ice Mile swum below 5ºC (41ºF) in any location in South America o An Ice Mile swum below 5ºC (41ºF) in any Polar location at 60º south or below...

Daniel Righetti shoots beautiful photography and videography of open water swimmers in Brazil including for the BISA ( Big Island Swimming Association ) courses around Ilha Grande in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: * 16 km The Challenge course * 25 km The Island Escape course * 37 km The Sheltered course * 48 km The Unsheltered course * 76 km The Complete course His work can be found at @daniel.righetti . By  Steven Munatones . Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the  WOWSA Awards ,  Oceans Seven ,  Openwaterpedia , Citrus Corps,  World Open Water Swimming Association ,  Daily News of Open Water Swimming ,  Global Open Water Swimming Conference . He is Chief Executive Officer of  KAATSU Global  and Editor of the  KAATSU Magazine . Inductee in the  International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame  (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and  Ice Swimming Hall of Fame  (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of...

After competing in the Rei e Rainha do Mar 10 km swim, the Swim Explorer, and the Fuga da Ilha Grande in his native Brazil, 53-year-old Marcelo Figuerinho set the best time for a Brazilian in the 16 km Ilha Grande in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was the ultramarathon swimming debut of the 53-year-old swimmer from Petrópolis. On February 25th, he set off on the 16 km BISA ( Big Island Swimming Association ) course, and completed the route from Freguesia de Santana to Praia do Pouso in 5 hours 15 minutes. This is the best mark for a Brazilian athlete on the course, second only to Argentine Damián Blaum who completed the course in 4 hours 12 minutes in May 2022. After finishing the challenge and learning of his great result, Figuerinho praised the race and the beauty of the course. "T he swim presented unforgettable moments. It was sensational; the scenery and the sunrise were wonderful ." The Ilha Grande course is located in one of the most beautiful scenarios in Braz...

Prabhat Koli from Mumbai, India has acccomplished many achievements in the open water swimming world during his young career. With his March 5th crossing of the Cook Strait , Koli became the 22nd person to complete the Oceans Seven . Escorted by Donald Dring, observed by Brett Richardson, crewed by Chief Omar Vaquero, and navigated by Corey Fairbairn on March 1st 2023, Koli crossed the Cook Strait from the South Island to the North Island in 8 hours 41 minutes and 5 seconds. Koli became the youngest person in history to complete the Oceans Seven at 23 years 7 months and 2 days. He talks below about his motivations: Q1. Do you swim to inspire the youth of India? A1. I have swam 18 open water swimming events that has varied from 10 km to 81 km in India, which includes pioneering 6 new courses. I am now exploring new swim routes in different states of India to inspire more swimmers to participate in open water swimming. Over the last two years, I organized long distance ...

History tells us that Japanese samurai, the Roman Legions, and the Spartan soldiers all underwent cold water swimming as part of their military and mental preparations. The leaders of these hardened men of earlier millenia knew that training along the seashore, in lakes, and in rivers, especially during the winter and early spring months, would increase their tolerance to cold and various hardships, making them overall better warriors. They learned to swim in all kinds of different water environments and conditions. The Japanese had specific terms for these types of swimming: shinden ryu (marathon swimming), kankai ryu (ocean swimming), suifu ryu (river swimming or rapids swimming), as well as other methods that were based on the topography and waterways (e.g., coastline or mountain areas). For example, if the samurai had to fight while wearing armor, they would study the kobori ryu (combative swimming) where the samurai would eggbeater (tread water) while keeping their upper...

Andy Donaldson of Scotland broke the long-standing record of the Cook Strait by 4 minutes in his 4 hour 33 minute crossing on March 7th. Jacqueline McClelland , who crewed with Jackson Kibbelwhite and Sarah Harrow and NZOWSA observer Jackson Arlidge , reported on the 23 km crossing from South Island to North Island in New Zealand. " Andy swam at a 1:10 per 100 meter pace in the 14-15°C water, escorted by Grant Orchard of Katabatic Charters ." Donaldson was humbled by the experience, writing on Facebook: " I'm truly lost for words with that one...to swim through the night with a sky full of stars, during a spring tide, with such a wonderful team by my side... that was a special experience that will sit with me forever. We got across safely with perhaps one of my best ever executed swims, and as an incredible bonus, the swim was the fastest Cook Strait crossing ever, lowering one of marathon swimming's long-standing records, Casey Glover's 4 hour 3...

Phil White is a visionary. He saw the future of winter swimming in his home state of Vermont and created the Memphremagog Winter Swimming Festival . For nine consecutive years, White has attracted hundreds of swimmers to the middle of the frozen Lake Memphremagog in Vermont. Similar to his catchy vernacular for his summer lake events (e.g., yacker ), White has originated the term hooker for his safety personnel at his winter swimming extravaganza. As Don Houghton Jr. demonstrates above along the edge of the 25m pool at the 2023 Memphremagog Winter Swimming Festival (photo courtesy of Kathleene Marcil ), a safety hooker walks along the edge of the winter swimming pool with the primary responsibility to rescue a swimmer in trouble by attaching a safety harness apparatus around their body. The harness - or hook - pulls the troubled swimmer out of cold water. White and Houghton were part of the seriously-minded, totally dedicated local support crew who gathered to welcome ...