Members of the Porthsele Bluetits Chill Swimmers have made the world rankings of Winter Swimmers after taking part in the Winter Swimming World Championships at Lake Bled in Slovenia from January 23-29.
St Davids-based Bluetits founder Sian Richardson was among 40 Bluetits and Bluetits supporters who attended the championships, where Bluetits swimmers took part in the 25 metre, 50 metre and 100 metre breast-stroke categories, and in the 25 metre relay, swimming in six degrees centigrade water.
The trip was arranged by Gloucester Bluetits, and in true “Eddie the Eagle” spirit, Bluetits contestants aged from 26 to 68 competed against gold medal winning winter swimmers.
The Winter Swimming World Championships are a relatively new invention. Organised by the International Winter Swimming Association, the event draws people from all over the world. Everyone who takes part in the competition gets a position in the world rankings.
Some 16 percent of the swimmers taking part in this year’s event were Bluetits.
The Bluetits Chill Swimmers is a worldwide cold-water swimming movement that began in St Davids, Pembrokeshire in 2014 and now has over 100,000 members all over the world. Bluetits founder Sian Richardson was among the men and women who attended the championships.
“We had a fantastic time,” says Sian. “We had people swimming next to champion swimmers a third of their age who were gold medal winners. You might come in 15 seconds behind the rest, which is a long time in swimming – it means you’re still swimming when everybody else has finished, but you still get out punch your fist into the air and everyone screams for you. It’s an amazing feeling, and it was amazing thing to watch as well.”
Sian now plans to create a Bluetits GB ice swimming team to compete in future competitions.
“You won’t have to compete in time qualifiers to join the team,” she says. “More than anything we want people with a big laugh and a big heart, and our entry criteria will be as inclusive as possible. We really enjoy being a team. None of us think we’re competitive until we start looking at our times and thinking that maybe next time we could have someone on the podium!
“This was the first time we’ve ever taken part in anything like this and the courage our swimmers showed was incredible. The atmosphere was wonderful. We were rubbing shoulders with international swimmers, and they were supporting us – we’ve definitely got the bug and will be back for more.”
A video of the trip can be seen here: https://youtu.be/UngBd3LW_hk
Help keep news FREE for our readers
Supporting your local community newspaper/online news outlet is crucial now more than ever. If you believe in independent journalism, then consider making a valuable contribution by making a one-time or monthly donation. We operate in rural areas where providing unbiased news can be challenging. Read More About Supporting The West Wales Chronicle
