Brave Czechs take icy Boxing Day plunge in Prague river

Swimmers can be seen braving the chilling waters of Prague’s Vltava river (that hovered around four-degrees-celsius) to engage in a traditional winter swim.

More than 360 swimmers from around the world suited up last Thursday (26 December) to pay tribute to Alfred Nikodem.

Nikodem, one of the city’s famous goldsmiths, pioneered the tradition in 1923. This year marks the 78th Alfred Nikodem Memorial Swim.

In 1946, the river was reportedly so cold that whenever organisers broke the ice to form a swimming channel it would re-freeze instantly, leading to the event being called off.

At this year’s swim, Lenka Pavlacá, a well-decorated Czech long-distance swimmer, secured her 10th win.