By Noah Kantner

For many brave souls, a Polar Bear Plunge is an event held during the winter where participants plunge into a body of water, in spite of the low temperatures. There are many Polar Bear Plunges that take place across the world. Whether it is to raise money for charity, for health benefits, tradition, or even personal enjoyment, these plunges happen for a variety of reasons.

The Polar Bear Plunge has very early origins, as the beneficial effects of cold-water immersion dates as far back as 3500 BC, when cold was used for therapeutic purposes. Cold-water bathing was also promoted in Europe during the 19th century as a health remedy, and then in the 20th century it began to be used as post-exercise recovery. The Polar Bear Plunge has proved to be more than just a physical challenge for humans to attempt.

Coney Island Polar Bear Club. Photo courtesy of Jim McDonnell: The Outdoor Swimming Society

The first modern recorded Polar Bear Plunge is believed to have been organized by the Coney Island Polar Bear Club in 1903, borrowing from a Canadian New Year’s tradition. According to American Pool Lifeguards, “Thousands of participants register and gather each year to take the plunge and millions are raised.” It’s incredible how an event so simple and seemingly crass can turn into something so important that raises money, benefitting so many people.

Historically, these plunges have primarily taken place in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. There are many famous plunges that still occur annually, such as the The Coney Island Polar Bear Plunge in New York City and The New Year’s Day Polar Plunge in Lake George in upstate New York. The Coney Island Polar Bear Plunge even recently set a record for number of plungers, with around 6,000 brave jumpers and around 40,000 spectators.

By the late 20th century, Polar Bear Plunges were primarily taking place in order to raise money for a variety of charities. One example of this is the Special Olympics Polar Plunge, which raises millions of dollars every year for athletes with disabilities. In 2023, during the Virginia Beach Plunge for Special Olympics, the plungers raised a record breaking $1.55 million. There are many other plunges that take place nationwide that have substantial impacts and raise large amounts of money for a large array of great causes.

“Ice bathing” dates back centuries in Russia, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. In Russia, Orthodox Christians have taken the Epiphany Plunge. Cara Giaimo writes in Atlas Obscura, “The Epiphany marks the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, and is celebrated on January 19th, one of the least obvious times of year for swimming. For the ritual, known as ‘The Great Sanctification of the Water,’ a priest blesses a body of water, and devotees immerse themselves in it.” This immersion was typically just a “church-style sprinkling,” but in the 1990s Russians began to implement the Polar Bear Plunge aspect into the mix. Giaimo writes, “Now thousands spend the 19th cutting cross-shaped holes in icy rivers, cannonballing into local pools, or charging into the Black Sea.” In spite of the below freezing temperatures, devoted participants will still take part in this tradition every year.

Some people believe that there are numerous potential health benefits to cold plunging, including help with depression, brain health, muscle soreness, fat loss, and immune system boosting. Plungers have described the experience as “physically taxing” but also very healthy and “excellent for stress relief,” According to Gravity International Programs’ Shannon Brady, “Though the scientific benefits of the plunge have yet to be proven, participants claim that it is beneficial to their physical and mental health, and that it helps them let go of anxieties from the previous year and look forward to what they want to accomplish in the new year.”

Vancouver’s 2023 Polar Bear Swim: Image courtesy of CityNews.

Canadians are also typically annual participants in the plunge. Vancouver’s annual Polar Bear Swim has been in action since 1920 and usually has anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 registered jumpers every single year, with their record being 2,128 brave participants in English Bay in the year 2000. In the Netherlands, up to 10,000 people dive into the frigid waters at Scheveningen annually. As stated on the website “Days of the Year,” “New Year’s Day is thought to be the best day for this kind of swim, because as many participants have noted, after you’ve done that, no challenge the New Year could bring could possibly phase you.”

My family and I taking part in the 2023 jump. Photo courtesy of Noah Kantner.

The Polar Bear Plunge has made its way across the country and around the world, and it has even made its way into my family. As I talked about in my Senior Speech on November 21, I started participating in my family’s plunge when I was nine years old. This annual Polar Bear Plunge was created by my uncles, Rob and Jeff Ukrop, in 1987. This plunge wasn’t created for any purpose but to have fun with family. The plunge consists of all of the members, a week or so before Christmas, going out to our family’s farm in Henrico and jumping into our lake. There are usually around a dozen or so people that jump, depending on the year. The water temperature is typically around 40 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit but has also reached temperatures as low as 29 degrees before. The feeling of hitting that water is something that you never get used to. 

Polar Bear Plunges happen in many different destinations and for many different purposes. While my family’s plunge doesn’t raise money for charity or attract thousands of jumpers each year, it still brings us all together during the holiday season.

Featured image courtesy of Juan Cortez: Explore Butte County.