Ice Breaker
WORDS Robyn Dawson + Kate Steels
PHOTOS Stu Walker
While the ice bath trend may be introducing more newbies to the health benefits of cold water, for over ten years there has been a global community of people taking to the ice every winter to prove their worth in chilly waters. Formed in 2009 with a vision to share the benefits of ice swimming and turn it into a new sport, the IISA (International Ice Swimming Association) was born. The IISA coined the term ‘Ice Swimming’ and categorised it as swimming in waters of 5 degrees or lower, wearing only “skins”. Not a wetsuit in sight - just swimwear, a hat and goggles! Since then, more people around the globe have been competing in IISA events, testing their stamina and competing in distances from 50m to 1000m and the ultimate icy challenge to become the fastest person in the world to complete an Ice Mile. One of those early adopters of the sport was our newest Red Ambassador, Kate Steels. Now a global ice swimming champion, Kate, 54, is the third person in the world (and first in the UK) to achieve the ICE SEVENS. This comprises swimming an ice mile in each continent of the world including one at zero degrees C! Kate competed in the 5th World Championships in Somoens, France, in January 2023 joining fellow Red Ambassador, Fenwick Ridley, as they made up two expert members of Team GB.
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