‘You feel you’ve conquered the world’: a Thames swimmer on the river’s first bathing site in London | Swimming
Some people think we are odd for swimming in the Thames. “Isn’t it cold?” they ask with a shiver, like they are the ones who just took the plunge. Er, yes, that’s the whole point. Cold water ignites the central nervous system and reboots the mind. “Isn’t it dirty?” they ask. Yes, sometimes, particularly when it’s rained. Then we don’t get in the Thames, we get in a rage instead, taking contamination measurements and signing petitions challenging the behaviour of the water company that spews sewage into the river. The truth is there are plenty of days when the water acquires a yellow foam on the surface and you can no longer see your hands below the surface. Even the dogs don’t get in. But there are lots of people who love the water and the rivers just as much as we do, even if they don’t get in for a swim. People who have been frustrated by the way the private sector has treated something we feel belongs to us. That is why the …



