If the Tall Ferns are basketball players and the Black Ferns are rugby players, then who are the Frozen Ferns? Seven Sharp reporter Jendy Harper dives into the icy world frequented by the cool customers.
As Sophie Winter dipped her toes into the water at the Central Otago Swimming Pool in Alexandra, a few curious onlookers watched from behind glass windows, enjoying the warmth of the indoor pool complex, where the water was a balmy 28 degrees.
The teenage swimmer was about to enter the cold waters of the facility’s outdoor pool — sitting at around 7 degrees — wearing only her togs and goggles.
Sophie calmly slid into the water with barely a shudder, though she admitted later that getting in and out was “the hardest thing”.
“You know it is very much a mental challenge; you’ve got to get over that,” she explained.
“You’ve got to get over the cold. You can’t think about it when you get in the water.”
Sophie & Heidi Winter were already accomplished age-group swimmers when they took up ice swimming after learning that Alexandra was hosting the national championships in July. The event alternates yearly between the town’s public pool and the lake at St Bathans.
Ice swimming is unassisted swimming in water at five degrees or less, with a silicon cap, pair of goggles, and a standard swimming costume.
Claiming records
No one was more surprised than the siblings when, at the event, Sophie claimed the world open record for the 100-metre individual medley, while Heidi claimed world junior best times in the 100- and 200-metre individual medley.
The sisters have now been selected for the national team, the Frozen Ferns, which will compete at the sixth edition of the IISA World Championships in Molveno, Italy, in January 2025.
For both young women, one of the attractions of ice swimming is the small but supportive community that has sprung up around the extreme sport.
“The environment is cool; the people who do it are cool. It just feels like a big family,” enthused Heidi.
“You’re congratulated for just getting into the water and swimming. You don’t have to do well, and people are like, ‘Wahoo, go you.'”
Seventeen team members, including Queenstown-based Bethany Rogers, will represent New Zealand in Italy.
Seven Sharp caught up with Rogers and Netherlands representative Anneke Veenstra at Lake Wakatipu, where the pair regularly train on a small stretch of water near Frankton designated for swimmers.
Rogers grew up in the north of England and was accustomed to swimming in cold water from a young age.
“Summer holidays, as soon as it reached double figures, were in the water, in the North Sea,” Rogers recalled.
Competitive ice swimmers aren’t permitted to wear a wetsuit, which suits Rogers.
“I couldn’t afford one when I first started swimming, and I thought I better save to buy one.
“But instead of not swimming during that time, I thought I’d swim just a little bit. And I built it up and built it up, and by the time I’d saved enough for a wetsuit, I thought, gee, I don’t need this.”
Afterdrop
As Seven Sharp filmed, the pair covered around a kilometre in the water and admitted they had to be careful not to overdo the time spent immersed in chilly temperatures and risk becoming hypothermic.
“That’s why it’s very important to know your body and how long you can stay in the water,” Veenstra explained.
“It’s called afterdrop because when you get out, you actually get colder.”
Bridgette Winter recalled her daughter, Heidi, becoming hypothermic on her first attempt at swimming a kilometre.
“Well, we thought, this is new. We learnt in a hurry. You have to get their wet togs off quickly and get them warm. Warm them slowly, get lots of layers on them and time.
“It takes about an hour to warm up sometimes.”
The Winter family are all heading to Italy in January, and the New Zealand squad hopes to attract a sponsor to help with the cost.
Rogers suggested an ice cream or frozen goods company would be a good fit for the Frozen Ferns, “but we’re happy to work with anybody”.
