We sent Katie, our Business Development Manager, to the Winter Swimming World Championships (WSWC) in Oulu, Finland to see what all the chilly fuss was about.
When most people think of Finland they think of visiting Santa in Lapland, the northern lights or escaping to a sauna somewhere in the snow. For me, Finland became the place where I would swim in –0.2°C water.
Earlier this year, NOWCA gave me the opportunity to travel to Oulu, Finland to attend the Winter Swimming World Championships (WSWC). I was asked to go as part of my role with NOWCA to connect with the international open water swimming community, learn more about winter swimming culture and represent the UK. But once the opportunity came up, I decided that, well with the encouragement of Bear (a pro in the ice swimming world), the best way to truly understand the experience was to enter the competition myself. I of course had to also book my partner in for a swim who is also a non cold water swimmer.
Preparing for ice swimming in the UK
Training for an event like this in the UK turned out to be more of a challenge than expected. My partner and I spent the month leading up to the championships swimming at various open water venues across the UK to help prepare our bodies for the cold. The only problem was that the water temperature never dropped below 6°C.
To get closer to the conditions we would face in Finland, we had to get creative. This meant buying hundreds of kilograms of ice and pouring it into ice baths at home to simulate colder temperatures. It was a slightly chaotic training method but it helped us begin adapting to the shock of colder water.
There were definitely moments where we questioned whether entering the event had been a good idea, but the excitement of the challenge and the opportunity to experience winter swimming at the highest level kept us motivated.
Arriving in Oulu
When we arrived in Oulu it quickly became clear that winter swimming in Finland is on another level.
The race pool had been chainsawed directly into the frozen river, creating a swimming channel surrounded by thick ice and snow. The ice itself was around 70cm thick and huge blocks were removed to form the race pool. These blocks didn’t go to waste either – many of them were used to build an ice sauna next to the swimming area.
The water was around –0.2°C and the air temperature dropped to around –14°C during the event.
Standing on the riverbank and watching swimmers race through a pool carved out of solid ice was something I will never forget.
The atmosphere was incredible. Swimmers had travelled from all over the world to take part and the level of experience within the group was inspiring. We found ourselves swimming alongside Olympians, world record holders and swimmers who have completed some of the biggest endurance challenges in the sport, including the Ocean’s Seven. Despite that level of achievement, the community was incredibly welcoming and supportive.
My races
I entered the shortest distance possible for the time I was there which was the 25m butterfly. I was so nervous and excited and the adrenaline completely took over.
The experience was intense but amazing. As soon as I got out of the water I felt such a huge sense of accomplishment and immediately wished I had booked more swims. When we were planning the trip in the UK the unknown of the conditions definitely put me off entering more races.
Luckily things worked out differently.
On the last day of the trip we were already packed up and getting ready to head to the airport when a lovely swimmer from Taplow told me that a friend of hers was pulling out of her 50m breaststroke race and that I could swim in that heat if I wanted to.
I grabbed the opportunity.
With about twenty minutes to prepare I found myself suddenly racing again. This time it was straight in at the deep end with the 50m breaststroke. It was definitely harder, especially as I had only really trained for a single length butterfly, but I managed to finish 9th overall which I was really happy with.
A different approach to cold water
One of the most interesting parts of the experience was seeing how cold water swimming was approached compared to what we typically encourage in the UK.
At UK venues we advise swimmers entering very cold water to take things slowly. We encourage people to enter gradually, control their breathing, allow their body time to adjust and then warm up slowly afterwards with a hot drink, warm clothes and hot water bottles rather than jumping straight into intense heat.
At the Winter Swimming World Championships the approach was very different.
Swimmers would get in quickly, race, get out and head straight to the sauna. The exposure time was short in most cases, often under thirty seconds for the 25m races and under a minute for longer distances. The focus was on short, intense cold exposure followed by rapid rewarming. Although the event did have distances up to 450m where swimmers could spend over 12 minutes in the water.
Seeing this first hand really highlighted how much context matters when it comes to cold water swimming.
What this means for swimmers and venues in the UK
The experience gave me a lot to think about when it comes to supporting swimmers and venues back home in the UK.
While many of the races were short, the championships also included longer swims. The longest distance was 450m, with some swimmers spending more than 12 minutes in the water. Those taking on the longer distances were required to complete medical checks beforehand, including an ECG. Having that level of screening felt reassuring and is something I would strongly recommend for anyone considering swimming longer distances in extremely cold conditions.
Although there were safety teams and medical staff present, it was also clear that a lot of the real expertise came from experienced winter swimmers who understood the signs to look for when someone might be getting too cold. A few individuals with significant experience were watching swimmers closely and helping identify when someone might need to exit the water.
Another thing I noticed was how important it was to monitor stroke technique. Changes in coordination or stroke can be an early sign that someone is becoming too cold, and recognising those changes quickly is incredibly important.
It also reinforced how important it is to swim with others and to have knowledgeable people around who can keep an eye on you. At organised venues swimmers benefit from trained teams who understand cold water and can recognise when someone may be getting too cold.
NOWCA venues have qualified lifeguards and experienced staff on hand who are able to monitor swimmers, recognise changes in behaviour or stroke and step in if support is needed.
In the UK our open water venues often support swimmers of all abilities and experience levels, and swims can be less structured than a race environment. Because of this, the gradual approach we encourage in the UK remains incredibly important. Encouraging swimmers to enter slowly, control their breathing and warm up gradually afterwards helps manage the cold shock response and keeps swimmers safer.
Experiences like this help us continue learning from international events and bring those insights back to support NOWCA venues and swimmers across the UK.
Bringing the experience back to NOWCA
Being able to attend the Winter Swimming World Championships gave me a new perspective on cold water swimming and the communities built around it.
Seeing how Finland embraces winter swimming and how carefully events are managed even in extreme conditions has given me lots of ideas and insights that I hope to bring back to help support NOWCA venues and swimmers across the UK.
I am incredibly grateful to NOWCA for the opportunity to attend and to Sundfoerr Adventure Robes for helping keep me warm before and after the races.
And while most people travel to Finland to visit Santa or relax in a sauna, I can now say I travelled there to race butterfly in a frozen river.
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