My Biarritz Swim Crossing 2025 Edition

Date: June 21, 2025 — Location: Port-Vieux, Biarritz

The calm before the swell

It’s 8 a.m. when I arrive at Port-Vieux. The sun slowly settles over the rocks, and the ocean is already breathing. I greet the organizers from Biarritz Olympique Natation, wave to the swimmers I know, and scan the sea to find my angles.Wetsuit zipped up, fins adjusted, pink cap on my head — I’m ready to dive into their race.

The water feels perfect for late June, but I know I’ll be in it for hours. My wetsuit becomes my best ally: keeping me warm, helping me float, and saving me a few bruises when the jet ski takes me back to the front of the race.

From the surface, everything looks peaceful. But just minutes before the start, the contrast is striking: swimmers are warming up, focused, fixing their goggles, waiting for the signal.I’m already in the water, floating in front of them, camera in hand, ready to capture what the beach can’t see.

The big plunge

The starter sounds. In a heartbeat, the calm breaks. A human wave rushes forward: sand flying, water splashing, hearts racing.The Port-Vieux explodes with life.

Bodies jump, dive, collide. Sunlight turns them into golden silhouettes. It’s pure energy, a joyful chaos. From the shore, you hear cheers. From the water, only bubbles and breath.

Between swell and horizon

Once again this year, the swell joined the party, milder than last year, but still tricky. From water level, the buoys vanish behind waves, and I sometimes lose track of the swimmers. Some drift with the current, others swim close, eyes locked ahead, and that’s when the magic happens.

My jet ski pilot, Thomas, takes me to the front of the race, or at least, that’s the plan! This time, between Roche Plate and Boucalot, he forgot me! So I swam 2000 meters with one arm (the other holding my 6kg camera housing) to get back to Port-Vieux. A small personal challenge… and a big laugh later.

A postcard in motion

Photographing the Biarritz Swim Crossing feels like swimming through a living postcard: the Rock of the Virgin, the Casino, the Hôtel du Palais, the carved cliffs, the Boucalot, the Grand Caritz…

Every angle reveals another side of this iconic city. From the sea, it’s a rare privilege, to be right there, in the heart of the blue ballet.

My favorite shots?

The one showing the whole Grande Plage in the background. And a portrait of a young swimmer, calm, focused, determined, perfectly in tune with the ocean.

The finish and the celebration

The finish line stands where it all began, under the arch set on the Port-Vieux beach, watched by the visitors on the Rock of the Virgin.One by one, swimmers emerge from the ocean, exhausted, radiant, victorious.The speaker calls their names, music plays, applause echoes.

Volunteers from BO Natation offer refreshments, and the lifeguards from Biarritz Sauvetage Côtier keep watch until the very end.

Three years of connection and complicity

"Hi Marc !"

“Hey Margaux!” It’s my third edition, and something has changed. Swimmers now know who I am: not “the girl with the weird box,” but their photographer in the water. Some recognize me mid-race, take a second to wave, to smile. These little gestures mean the world.

The Biarritz Swim Crossing, to me, is all about connection, sharing, and challenge.

Thank you all 💙

For your smiles, your waves, your trust. Sorry to those I missed, sometimes a wave got in the way. But I’ll be there again next year.

Are you ready to dive back in?

📍 Biarritz Swim Crossing – 2025 Edition

Organizers: Biarritz Olympique Natation, City of Biarritz, FFSS, Biarritz Sauvetage Côtier

📅 Next edition: Summer 2026

📸 Full gallery available online