This Saturday, the Villette basin hosted an event as frosty as it was unusual: the Christmas Cup. Between sportsmanship, disguises and historical nods, experienced swimmers and courageous amateurs bathed in the Paris Seine, in water at 7 degrees, with the aim of relaunching a forgotten Parisian tradition.
“Hop, it stings!” » Coming out of the water, with a smile on his lips, Benoît sums up the general feeling that floated this Saturday on the Quai de Loire. Like him, 200 of them threw themselves into the Villette basin for this new edition of the Christmas Cup.
Between sporting challenges and crazy party
Why put yourself through such an ordeal in the middle of winter? For Rémy, a passionate swimmer, it is above all a historical tribute. “It’s a return to the past. It was last organized in the 1930s and 1940s and we would like it to be the start of an adventure. »
But for others the motivation is more spontaneous, or even 100% improvised. This is the case for Rémi, a local resident who discovered the event the same morning: “I said to myself, it’s funny, it’s right next to my house! »
The festive spirit and the crazy side of swimming in cold water attracted him to “test” the experience. A first for this man of Norman origin who previously had “never had the courage to do it”.
On the edge of the pool, spectators observe the spectacle with amusement. “It’s not taken seriously,” confirms Isabelle, who came to take the photos. These are people who are there to have fun. There is nothing at stake. » She particularly appreciates this easygoing side without any feeling of stress.
Adaptation to cold water
Some, like Rémy Verron, advise starting the dip in spring to gradually get used to the drop in temperatures. Carmine, a member of the Polar Bears association and recognizable by his sunglasses, assures us that we “misunderstand the power of the human body”. According to him, after 30 seconds of inevitable hyperventilation, adaptation occurs naturally.
Benoît opted for caution. Not being used to the extreme cold, he went “quietly in a breaststroke” for “a good three minutes” in the pool. A performance to be commended when we know that the water is approaching 6 degrees. “I have already done some training in the cold, I have swum quite often in Normandy,” he explains, believing that he is “a little prepared”.
If the cold is the main challenge, the greenish colored pool water may have scared away more than one person. Rémy Arrivel doesn’t hide his reluctance at the start: “For the moment, it doesn’t make you want it but it’s only 100 meters, it doesn’t matter.”
A crippling obstacle for Isabelle, the spectator. Although she swims in the sea all year round, she is categorical about the Paris basin: “It’s because of the quality of the water even if I know that it is monitored. I won’t do it because of that. »
Swimmers shivering but delighted
On site, the organization is rigorous. Véronique, a volunteer from ten o’clock in the morning for the installation, manages the distribution of bibs and starting bracelets. Originally from the North, the cold is not unknown to him. “The atmosphere is good, pleasant, everyone is smiling,” she says, stressing that the public comes above all for the unusual and the atmosphere.
In the end, the bet was successful, the swimmers came out shivering but delighted. Carmine recalls that for his association, it was a “goal” of the year. Benoît recommends the experience to everyone.
This reissue of the Christmas Cup, which disappeared in the 1940s, seems to have found its audience. “It must continue”, hopes Rémy Verron who wishes to see here “the beginning of an adventure”.
