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Over 680 swimmers took part in the Winter Swimming Championships 2008

Warm sunshine greeted over 2,500 visitors and 680 swimmers from 21 countries to the Winter Swimming Championships 2008 held 9-10 February at Tooting Bec Lido, South London

Despite balmy air temperatures of 17 º C , the water was still a toe curling 6 º C at the Winter Swimming Ch ampionships 2008 – held for the first time outside of Finland at South London 's Tooting Bec Lido. The championships attracted 680 swimmers who battled it out over 95 heats in the official race stroke ‘head up' breaststroke and other non-competitive relay and freestyle races . Check out the results of all the races .

Highlights from the two-day event included a water performance competition which was won by a team from Finland who enacted a wedding story called ‘Icy Glow'. While Morris dancers, seminars on the merits of cold water, swimming stories from around the world, and two entire hog roasts washed down with pints of Chilly Willy and Blue Tit real ale made up the rest of the dry-land entertainment.

Swimmers enjoyed the warmth of a traditional Finnish log sauna built and donated by Honkarakenne Oyj and a wood-burning, hot geyser wooden bath barrel after their chilly championship races.