On 26 December 2011, as every year, we organised the oldest Czech cold-water swimming competition: the Alfred Nikodem Memorial. Its 65th edition again offered 100-, 300- and 750-metre distances. The longest was a timed race, with swimmers assessed on their finishing places as well as the distance completed; the shorter swims had no placing. All distances, however, earned points towards the Czech Winter Swimming Cup.
The memorial took place under clear skies, with water at 5.6°C and air at 6°C. The course crossed the Vltava between Střelecký and Slovanský islands, starting and finishing beside Slovanský Island. A record 230 swimmers took part.
The opening ceremony: swimmers line up on the pontoon that serves as the start and finish. Spectators pack the bridge and embankment, including a large group of cheering “Kangaroos”, who hung a banner above the bridge’s first arch: “Bohemians Praha swimmers support their cold-water swimming friends from I. PKO.” Thank you!
The event was supported by Prague City Hall, the Prague Sports Union and co-organiser Prague 1. Other sponsors included sports-equipment maker Speedo, Bytostav s.r.o., a relaxation centre and the publisher Mladá fronta.
Czech Television recorded the event for a fifteen-minute highlights programme on ČT4 Sport, scheduled for 27 December 2011 at 19:40, 29 December 2011 at 9:50 and 1 January 2012 at 12:45.
Links and downloads:
- Results
- Photo gallery
- ČT4 Sport video report
- iDnes video report
- Video report on Stream.cz (by: PLUTOINFOCENTRALA)
- Report, video and photos on the Prague 1 website
- Jaroslav Kroš’s photos on Facebook (selection)
- Jaroslav Kroš’s photos
- Jirka Kuřina’s photos on Facebook
- Photos from Otužilci Pardubice
- A small, captioned photo gallery