swimmers coming out of the water in wetsuits after long swim
© Red Bull Ireland
Swimming

Ireland’s best open-water swimming events

Dive into one of these great aquatic challenges for 2020 and 2021.
Written by Ellie Ross
4 min readUpdated on
Want to take your swimming up a notch? Then sign up for an open-water event. They are a great way to boost your training, give you something to work towards, and offer a sense of achievement once you’ve crossed the finish line.
There are plenty of swimming races happening all across Ireland, with varying distances and difficulties to suit both the novice swimmer and the really tough nuts. Most allow you to swim in either a wetsuit or, if you’re feeling truly hardcore, just your togs.
We’ve found some of the best open-water swimming events in Ireland for the rest of 2020, and the start of 2021. Dive in!

Dun Laoghaire Harbour Race

  • Where: Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin
  • When: Usually in September
The Dun Laoghaire Harbour Race celebrates its 89th year in 2019. It’s one of the most prestigious swims on the calendar and is also Ireland’s second oldest swim (after Liffey Swim). Crowds of spectators line the pier to cheer on swimmers as they attempt the 2.2km lap of the entire harbour. To give all abilities a fair chance at winning a medal, the race is handicapped, and children aged 13 and younger can enter 100m and 200m races before the main event.

The Great Fjord Swim

  • Where: Killary Fjord, Connemara
  • When: September 26 2020
Swimming through Killary Fjord beneath the mountains of Mayo and Connemara takes some beating. And you can choose from three distances (3.9km, 2km, and 750m) meaning this open-water event is open to all abilities. Want to up the ante? You can swim in just your togs in the longer events (wetsuits must be worn in the 750m event). If you enter the 2km and 750m events, you’ll be whizzed out into the middle of the fjord by boat and then jump off it to start the race.

The Baltimore Wet Weekend

  • Where: Baltimore, Co Cork
  • When: canceled for 2020
If one swimming event isn’t enough for you, try three in one. Spread over a weekend, the Baltimore Wet Weekend comprises a 500m night swim (on Friday) and two day swims (2km on the Saturday and 4km on Sunday). You can sign up to as many as you like and proceeds go towards the Wild Atlantic Pool in Baltimore. The main event is the swim on Saturday afternoon, which sees swimmers take a ferry out to Sherkin Island and swim the 2km back to the mainland.

Metalman Swim Series

  • Where: Sligo, Co Sligo
  • When: June 2021
This not-for profit swim race kicks off the 2020 open-water swimming season in Ireland. Named after the 13ft-tall navigational marker in the bay at Rosses Point Beach in Sligo, it caters to everyone from novices to advanced swimmers. You can choose between a 1km, 2km and 3km course, and there’s also the option of a relay followed by an eliminator. Kayaks are on hand for safety as you swim between the buoys, and prizes are up for grabs for different age categories.

Vibes and Scribes Lee Swim

  • Where: River Lee, Co Cork
  • When: July 2021
This is a great urban swim that sees you power through the River Lee right in the heart of Cork city. It’s a point-to-point event that consists of around 2km swimming in total, including a long downstream section (1.7km) and a short upstream section (300m). You’ll pass under ten bridges and feel the carnival atmosphere, which continues late into the evening. There are separate categories for wetsuit and non-wetsuit swimmers, with age group prizes and trophies up for grabs.

Glendalough National Park Swim

  • Where: Derrybawn, Co Wicklow
  • When: 5 September 2020
This annual race takes place in the upper lake at Glendalough. Offering three distances (750m, 1.5km and 3.9km), it’s a great choice for swimmers of varying abilities to have a go at an event in a truly spectacular setting. All three races start at the water’s edge with the 1.5km and 3.9km going around St Kevin’s Bed in the middle of the lake before returning back to shore. The two shorter events usually take place on the Saturday, with Sunday reserved for the truly hardcore, taking on the iron distance event.