Snow joke: Inside Southern Africa’s rare high-altitude ice swim
· The South African
Africa isn’t the first place that springs to mind for ice swimming.
But this week, athletes from around the world will head to Lesotho’s Afriski Mountain Resort to dive into near-freezing water for one of the continent’s most extraordinary sporting events.
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Taking place from 31 July to 2 August, the IISA South African National Ice Swimming Championships sees competitors race under official International Ice Swimming Association (IISA) rules in a high-altitude alpine setting.
The programme includes races over 50m, 100m, 250m, 500m and 1km, with the event also serving as a qualifier for the 2027 World Championships.
A snow course unlike any other
Forget a swimming pool. The championship is held in one of Afriski’s mountain dams, where organisers carve a narrow lane through the frozen surface, leaving solid ice around the course.
The venue sits at 3030 metres above sea level. Organisers have described it as the “Highest Altitude Swim in the World.”
While higher-altitude open-water swims have taken place elsewhere, Afriski remains among the world’s highest venues for an organised ice swimming championship.
More than a cold dip
Afriski says the championship offers competitors “a rare opportunity to compete in an unforgettable high-altitude alpine setting,” while following official IISA rules and medical safety regulations.
The event is being billed as “THE ULTIMATE TEST OF HUMAN ENDURANCE”, with promoters inviting swimmers to compete “At altitude. In freezing water. Against the backdrop of Africa’s most dramatic winter landscape.”
Billed as the highest altitude swim in the world, the event takes place at over 3000m above sea level. Image: Afriski/ FacebookAccording to the IISA, ice swimming is contested in water 5°C or colder, with competitors wearing only a standard swimsuit, goggles and a silicone cap. Other rules include a water start (no diving) and open turns (no tumble turns).
Conditions are looking to be ideal for this group of hardy competitors, with snowfall forecast over the Maloti-Drakensberg range later this week. Click here for our latest snow report.