The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
The Kilkee Sub Aqua Club Christmas Day swim is back with a splash this year after it inspired Failte Ireland to film swimmers and Santa enjoying the chilly Atlantic waters.
The piece is running on RTE television during December to showcase its weather forecasts.
Christmas arrived early this year in #Kilkee, County #Clare. On a blue-skied early November morning over 160 locals braved the cold to be part of @Failte_Ireland's festive ad now running on @WeatherRTE @rte #KeepDiscovering pic.twitter.com/oXJfg3iHdk
— Fáilte Ireland (@Failte_Ireland) December 14, 2022
The swim will be re-enacted for real at 12.30pm on Christmas Day. Hosted by Kilkee Sub Aqua Club, the swim has been running for decades and is now an essential part of Christmas Day in Kilkee for visitors and locals alike.
“It’s a great day out for young and old and really has become a major community event. And of course it whets the appetite for the Christmas Day dinner,” says Vanessa Keane, the club’s Diving Officer.
The sponsored swim raises funds for the club’s Search & Recovery activities. But the swim is open to all to participate in and is developing into a fancy dress occasion, with people moving away from Santa costumes in recent years to appear as elves and Vikings or just in their pyjamas.
Since the Covid lockdowns, winter swimming has taken off in Kilkee and surrounding areas, boosting the numbers who take the plunge on Christmas Day to over 100.
The scuba club celebrated its 40th anniversary in November, and invited former members to mix with current ones while recognising the achievements of its longest-serving members.
The club is also pursuing plans to develop a new clubhouse that will be recognised as a Regional Dive Centre by the governing body for scuba diving, Diving Ireland.
“Four decades of development has seen the club become a centre for scuba and snorkelling training, as well as powerboat handling. A new centre will confirm Kilkee’s standing as an amazing place both above and below water,” added Vanessa.
Sponsoring of the swim can be done with individual members or at idonate
