Ex-Ski Jumping Coach Swam into Guinness Book of Records
The 49-year-old sports scientist Gerald Daringer swam six kilometers through icy water. All this merely with swimming trunks, cap, and goggles.
While most people struggle with the heat in July, Tyrolean Gerald Daringer plunged into four-degree cold water.
This summer, the ice swimmer completed his sixth officially ratified Arctic Ice Kilometre off Svalbard, Norway.
These are officially recognized extreme swimming distances in ice swimming. They are documented and validated by the International Ice Swimming Association (IISA) according to strict criteria.
Five Kilometres in Six Days
With his sixth Arctic Ice Kilometre, he equalizes the previous record of South African Ram Barkai and secures an entry into the Guinness Book of Records.
The 49-year-old covered five of the six kilometres within just six days. Two kilometres even on the same day.
"Twice over a kilometre in the Arctic Sea on one day – that only works if your mind, breathing, and nervous system are trained," said the Stubaier in a press release.
"You don't get rid of cold by fighting against it. You have to learn to regulate it."
From the Ski Jump to the Ice Pool
Before his career as an ice swimmer and sports scientist, Daringer worked for the ÖSV for a total of twelve years – between 2006 and 2013 even as head coach of the women's ski jumping team.
