Wim Hof

How it started.

Wim grew up in the Netherlands. His official account traces his fascination with cold water to his first immersion at 17, an experience he describes as a turning point after years of asking big questions about life.

A personal reason.

In his Vanity Fair Italia interview, Wim described how cold exposure helped him cope after his wife died in 1995, when he was raising four children. He says that experience pushed him to share what he had found with other people.

Becoming the Iceman.

His public identity grew around unusual endurance feats. Guinness documents under-ice swims, a barefoot half marathon on snow and repeated records for full-body contact with ice. He turned that visibility into a teaching practice built around breathing, cold exposure and commitment.