Polar Bear Plunge: Freezing for a reason

More than 3,200 participants in the 31st annual Polar Bear Plunge to benefit Special Olympics Delaware joined forces to raise more than $1 million, which is close to the record amount set two years ago.

This year’s event on Feb. 6 in Rehoboth Beach had two options – an actual jump into the Atlantic Ocean or staging virtual plunges.

The 3,244 polar bears braved a water temperature of 37 degrees and an air temperature of 32 degrees. The coldest plunge on record occurred in 1995 with wind chills of 25 degrees below zero.

Last year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was virtual with more than 2,200 bears raising more than $700,000. In 2020, a new record of more than $1 million was collected by more than 3,700 bears.

The popular event is an offshoot of the Lewes Polar Bear Plunge, which has taken place since 1982 with up to five plunges each winter at Cape Henlopen State Park, where the first few Special Olympics events took place. During the first year in 1992, 78 people took the plunge and raised $7,000. In 1998, the event moved to Rehoboth Beach, and it was expanded to include the winter festival in 2009.

So far, $14.8 million has been raised to support the 4,200 athletes who train and compete in Special Olympics programs.