Splash Mob: Calling all London outdoor swimmers!
The King’s Cross Pond Club is a naturally filtered swimming pond behind King’s Cross station in central London. Surrounded by flats, offices and with the Eurostar whooshing by, it is a little bit of magic plonked in a building site. And it is also due to close this weekend, despite having over 20,000 visitors in its first year and becoming a much-loved feature of the capital’s outdoor swimming scene.
The Campaign to Save Kings Cross Pond Club are calling on London’s swimmers to forget commuting to work on hot crowded trains, and instead join them in stripping off and head to Kings Cross Pond Club for a dip.
The pond was initially conceived by Eva Pfannes and Sylvain Hartenberg of Ooze Architects and artist Marjetica Potrč as “a living laboratory to test balance and to question a self-sustaining system.” Designed to be in place for at least two years, Argent, the property development company that originally commissioned the pond, have now decided to close it after just 17 months. Over 4,000 people have so far signed a petition urging Argent to reconsider their decision.
Swimmers, and supporters of the campaign to keep the pond open will meet on Tuesday 18 October at 9.15am in front of Kings Cross Station, strip off to their swimming gear, and parade up King’s Boulevard to the Kings Cross Pond Club ready to jump into the water.
TV Doctor Chris van Tulleken a vocal member of the campaign, and an avid user of the pond, will talk to assembled swimmers about the physical and psychological benefits of swimming in cold water. He says: “The benefits of the pond are so wide-ranging in terms of the health of both the users and the area, that to dismantle it would be a tragedy.”
If you want to join the splash mob then meet by the Henry Moore sculpture at the front of Kings Cross St Pancras Station at 9.15am tomorrow. If you haven’t already signed the petition to save the pond then you can add your name at: https://www.change.org/p/argent-fusion-keep-kings-cross-pond-open-for-all-year-swimming-please-don-t-scrap-it
Jonathan Cowie
Jonathan is a year-round skins swimmer with a particular love of very cold water. He has competed in ice swimming competitions around the world. He is a qualified open water coach with a particular love of introducing new swimmers to the open water.
