Ice swimmers shouted to encourage themselves while walking towards the pool in the middle of the Songhua River, half-naked in temperatures of minus 25 degrees Celcius.
Over 500 Hardy souls from across China, and further afield, took the plunge in Harbin on January 5th for an international tournament of ice swimming in the Songhua River.
The competition attracted 39 teams of 16 domestic provinces, the largest number ever. Other competitors were from foreign countries such as Russia.
Ice swimmers shouted to encourage themselves while walking towards the pool in the middle of the Songhua River, half-naked in temperatures of minus 25 degrees Celcius. The pool is 25 metres long and swimmers had to be in and out of it in less than two minutes to avoid hypothermia. Their bold actions brought plenty of spectators out.
The two-day tournament contained 16 groups of different races including 25m breaststroke and freestyle.
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