we also dive in Limoges

Bathe in ice water on January 1st. This is a slightly crazy tradition, generally practiced in the sea or the ocean. But on this first day of 2025, a handful of Limougeauds took the plunge into the Vienne. A personal challenge, but also an activist act.

Strengthening your body, giving yourself a boost after the feasts of the day before, or even bringing yourself luck for the rest of the year, the reasons that drive those who are called “frosty New Year's Eves” to throw yourself into the icy water on the first day of January, don't miss out! In general, these frosties are found on the beaches of Normandy, Brittany, the Basque Country or the Mediterranean. But at Limoges we had never seen this.

They came as a family to the foot of the Saint-Etienne bridge, around ten brave people, some wearing wetsuits, others, the craziest, a simple swimsuit.

“We hesitated to take the children, but they cried before leaving, saying they wanted to swim, so they came,” confides this dad wrapped up in his bath towel.

The water is 4 degrees, the dive is rapid.

Last July a collective from Limougeauds decided to dive into Vienne every first Sunday of the month. “Swimming in the Vienne has long been practiced in Limoges, the inhabitants of the bridges district used to swim, and today we don't understand why it's no longer a habit. We want to show that it's possible,” explains Julien Dellier, president of the L’Appel à la Vienne collective.

Today we swim to claim this right to swim.

Julien Dellier

President of the collective L’Appel de la Vienne

For the moment they have not discussed any agreement, even less an arrangement with the Limoges town hall, but they are storing up the arguments. “Going there proves that the river is swimmable, you won't come out sick. This is the fourth time we’ve done it,” explains Patrick Augeau.

Regarding water quality, no analysis has been carried out to ensure safe swimming. Julien Dellier admits: “for the moment we only have an empirical approach, there is the rowing club, the children who have been kayaking in the Vienne for years, and there has never been any significant health problem .”

“We are going to get in touch with municipalities which have set up public swimming in rivers all over France, to see how they did it, how they made it happen and to be able to discuss with the municipality of Limoges and see what 'it is possible to do,' concludes the president of the collective.

For the moment there is a beach in the metropolis, at Palais-sur-Vienne, but swimming has been prohibited there for several years.