Ben Lane speaks with French swimmer, Guillaume Le Loher
What does it mean to be a Renaissance Swimmer? For French open-water and ice swimmer Guillaume Le Loher, it means embracing swimming not just as a sport, but as a way to explore the world, test limits, and connect with others.
Guillaume has completed many remarkable swims, including the 30 km UltraEbre in Spain. His journey from the pool to polar waters has been one of steady discovery, built on resilience, learning, and a genuine curiosity for what lies beyond the lane lines.
From early races in indoor pools to the icy extremes of Antarctica and the Arctic, his story reminds us that swimming can become a way to experience the world and our own capabilities.
Finding Freedom in Ice and Open Water
Guillaume’s journey began in the pool, like many swimmers. For years, his world was measured in strokes per length, lap times, and endless advice on pacing and nutrition. Then, one day in Paris, he entered his first open-water event, a five-kilometre race that changed everything.
It wasn’t speed or competition that drew him in. It was the sense of freedom. The water moved unpredictably, the wind shifted, light flickered and disappeared.
“It felt like discovering swimming all over again,” he recalls.
The Cold as Teacher
That discovery quickly grew into something deeper. Scrolling through social media, Guillaume noticed an announcement for the first French Ice Swimming Championships. He didn’t fully know what ice swimming was, but the idea was irresistible. He signed up for the fifty-metre breaststroke in water below five degrees.
The shock of it wasn’t pain — it was clarity.
“Cold is a teacher; it strips away everything unnecessary,” he says.
The next year, he returned for the one-kilometre event and learned how the body and mind must work together under stress. The cold demanded focus, respect, and calm. It taught him to listen to his body and manage the fine line between endurance and overreach.
The Water as Language
From there, Guillaume’s swims became a way to experience new landscapes. Rivers in southern France, the calm of the Mediterranean, and then farther afield — Romania, Morocco, Poland, Antarctica, and the Arctic. Each body of water had its own conditions, its own personality.
Swimming became a practical way to travel, to connect with others, and to learn how people relate to water in different parts of the world.
Lessons in Failure
As his confidence grew, so did his goals. Ten kilometres, then more. His first attempt at a thirty-kilometre race in France ended in failure: a mix of warm water, cold air, and a body that couldn’t hold heat over time. He had to stop early.
It was a setback, but also a turning point.
“You learn more from the swims you fail than the ones you finish easily,” Guillaume says.
The following year he found redemption through an ice mile in Morocco, 1.6 kilometres in near-freezing water. Later, he returned to France to complete the 33km challenge he’d once abandoned. Those two swims — one short and brutal, one long and enduring — redefined what success meant to him.
The Community of the Current
This year, Guillaume took on the Triple Crown of the Marathon River Swim series, long-distance events across France, Spain, and Norway. The real challenge wasn’t just the swims, but the recovery and logistics between them.
What stood out most wasn’t competition, but camaraderie.
“In the water there are no barriers,” he says. “You’re united by the challenge.”
Swimmers, kayakers, and organisers all share the same goal: to move forward, safely, and together. It’s this sense of shared experience that keeps him returning year after year.
Motion as Meditation
Training, for Guillaume, isn’t about chasing medals or records. It’s a daily practice. He swims year-round, in pools for structure and in open water for perspective.
“It’s how I experience the world,” he says. “Swimming teaches patience, humility, and resilience.”
He dreams of new crossings — Gibraltar, perhaps the North Channel — but he’s in no hurry. Each season brings a new rhythm, another chance to explore what’s possible.
Final Reflections
Guillaume’s story may not offer a training plan or performance strategy, but it reflects the essence of the Renaissance Swimmer spirit: versatility, curiosity, and connection.
Swimming, for him, isn’t about achievement alone. It’s a way to learn, to travel, and to build community — one stroke, one place, one challenge at a time.
