Andrew Allum broke 6 minutes in the 456m endurance event at the inaugural Big Chill Swim Salford in England last December.

Now he is ready to rip a good one next weekend.

“Here’s hoping the water is cold enough,” are his thoughts.

That is certainly a mantra usually not at the forefront of most open water swimmers.

But ice swimmers are, admittedly, a completely different breed of athletes. Their threshold of 5ºC (41ºF) as set by the International Ice Swimming Association is a mark that is relished and hoped for by these dramatic adventurists.

Where they will take the sport – in terms of locations, distances, (time) duration, recovery protocols and safety aspects – will be something fascinating to follow over the next generation.

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