Over 40 swimmers brave icy Vltava River for Prague's Three Kings Swim
Boats carried participants to the centre of the river before they jumped into the water and swam back to shore. The water temperature was around 2°C, with air temperatures falling to minus 5°C. Swimmers stayed in the river for about ten minutes as rescue teams watched from nearby boats. Wearing crowns, three of the swimmers symbolised the biblical magi, while others followed in a long line toward the riverbank. Polar swimming has a long history in the Czech Republic and is seen as both a test of endurance and a social ritual. Similar winter swims take place every year in other Czech cities.
