Cool dip! Swimmers brave cold

IT was a case of keeping the silverware in the family at the Highgate Men’s Pond Christmas Day swim.
Lloyd Bruce, 16, won the Highgate Lifebuoys race, taking the festive crown from his grandfather Chris Connelly, who scooped the pot last year.
With the temperature a chilly three degrees, as well as the draw of a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie served up by the lifeguards, icy waters gave the swimmers the added incentive to complete the 40-odd-yard dash as quickly as they could.
Lloyd, who travelled up with Chris from Clacton, revealed he regularly swims in the sea. The Lifebuoys cup has been awarded every Christmas Day since 1903 – and Chris first won it 51 years ago. He said: “I have a brother who swims too, and we’ll have to get him to come up next year to make it a clean sweep.”
The winner of the Men’s all-comers challenge race had a secret advantage over his fellow competitors, noticeable only to the trained eye as a clue to his profession was marked on his chunky bicep: Sam Aiken, 28, is in the Parachute Regiment and his training showed as he streaked through the chilly waters to win by three lengths.
Ladies Pond regulars, who broke the all-male bastion of the Men’s Pond for their race, saw last year’s winner, Vanessa Hammond, keep a firm grip on her crown.
She came first out of a field of more than 20 swimmers.
DAN CARRIER