Calls are growing to include ice swimming as a demonstration sport at the 2026 Winter Olympics, hosted in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. The proposal, gaining traction within French sporting circles, aims to address perceived imbalances in the Winter Olympic program, which traditionally features fewer events than its summer counterpart.
The push for inclusion comes as the discipline gains visibility and participation. Patrice Dubois, a 70-year-aged resident of the Vendômois region of France, is currently preparing to compete in the World Ice Swimming Championships in Finland this March, training in his bathtub with ice delivered by a local fishmonger. Dubois’s dedication highlights the growing appeal of the sport, even among older athletes.
Marion Joffle, a 20-year-old French ice swimmer, has already achieved national prominence, holding multiple French championship titles and earning a medal at the World Championships in Murmansk last year. Joffle’s journey into ice swimming began with a project to swim the English Channel, a feat that led her to the discipline through the guidance of Philippe Fort, a successful Channel swimmer. She described the mental fortitude required, noting that early attempts involved swimming only 100 to 200 meters in water below 5 degrees Celsius, gradually increasing to a kilometer.
The sport is as well attracting recreational participants. In Schiltigheim, France, a group of four friends – Claire Urban, Élodie Renard, Nadine Sauer, and Cathie Matter – regularly practice ice swimming, even going so far as to break ice to access frigid waters. The group, comprised of lifeguards and competitive swimmers, emphasizes the health and wellness benefits of cold-water immersion. They recently participated in the French Ice Swimming Championships in Saint-Louis, viewing the event as a personal challenge rather than a competition focused on results.
The French Swimming Federation (FFN) has publicly supported the idea of Olympic inclusion, recognizing the growing popularity of the sport and the potential for French athletes to excel. However, no official decision regarding the inclusion of ice swimming in the 2026 Winter Olympics has been announced by the International Olympic Committee.
