City of Chicago :: City of Chicago Partners With Chicago River Swim to Re-Launch “The Big Jump,” Broaden Area to 750 Swimmers

CHICAGO — The Chicago River Swim offered by the City of Chicago and Mayor Brandon Johnson will deliver again The Big Jump and broaden the 2026 area to 750 certified swimmers. Registration is now open for each occasions at ChicagoRiverSwim.org.

The Big Jump will kick off the weekend on Friday, September 18, giving registered members of the general public a uncommon, sanctioned alternative to enter the river whereas elevating funds for ALS analysis and youth swim schooling. Mayor Johnson will function grasp of ceremonies, joined by Olympians and Paralympians from the U.S. and overseas, elected officers and notable Chicagoans together with Chicago Bears legend Charles Tillman and Grammy Award-winning producer and DJ White Shadow.

“The Chicago River belongs to all of Chicago, and The Big Jump is a powerful way to celebrate how far our city has come,” mentioned Mayor Brandon Johnson. “For generations, Chicagoans have worked to restore this river and reconnect our communities to it. This September, people from across our city and around the world will have the opportunity to experience the river in a whole new way, while supporting ALS research and making sure more young people have access to lifesaving swim and water-safety education.” 

The Big Jump revives an occasion first held in 2017, when Cook County Commissioner Josina Morita and Friends of the Chicago River introduced public officers collectively in Chinatown for a sanctioned leap into the river. The occasion celebrated progress in restoring the river and demonstrated a shared dedication to creating the Chicago-Calumet River system safely swimmable and accessible to all.

The Chicago River Swim offered by the City of Chicago and Mayor Brandon Johnson is a charitable open-water occasion held alongside the principle stem of the Chicago River. Launched in 2025, the inaugural occasion introduced 263 swimmers into the river for Chicago’s first organized open-water swim in 98 years and attracted worldwide consideration to town’s remodeled waterway.

“Last year proved that swimming could return to the Chicago River and become something meaningful for the entire city,” mentioned Doug McConnell, founding father of A Long Swim and the Chicago River Swim. “This year, we are creating more ways for people to be part of that experience, from opening The Big Jump to the public to welcoming more swimmers. Every participant will help us raise critical funds for ALS research and bring lifesaving swim education to more Chicago children.”

This 12 months’s Chicago River Swim will happen Sunday, September 20. The City of Chicago has expanded the sector from 500 to 750 certified swimmers, reopening registration for a restricted variety of contributors within the one- and two-mile occasions.  

The expanded weekend displays a long time of funding, advocacy, analysis and collaboration which have improved water high quality and remodeled the Chicago River into one of many metropolis’s most vital leisure and civic belongings. That progress has been superior by the City of Chicago, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, Friends of the Chicago River, Current, Shedd Aquarium, the Chicago Park District and lots of different public, nonprofit and group companions. Water high quality shall be carefully monitored main as much as and all through the weekend, together with testing carried out by water-quality consultants on the University of Illinois Chicago.

HOW TO JOIN THE BIG JUMP 

A restricted variety of spots shall be obtainable to the general public for The Big Jump. The price to take part is $500 per jumper, with proceeds supporting ALS analysis and youth swim schooling. Participants who elevate $1,000 or extra could deliver one visitor to the occasion; company won’t take part within the leap.

Participants will enter the river in small teams all through the morning. Each registered jumper will obtain a private swim buoy, gown, commemorative T-shirt, lunch, and a goodie bag. Registration is accessible at chicagoriverswim.org.

HOW TO JOIN THE CHICAGO RIVER SWIM 

The Swim is open to certified swimmers taking part in both the one- or two-mile occasion. With the sector expanded to 750 swimmers, a restricted variety of extra spots are actually obtainable. Qualified swimmers taken with taking part can overview the necessities and apply at chicagoriverswim.org.

INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPATION 

Olympians, Paralympians and different achieved swimmers from Chicago, throughout the United States and world wide will come collectively for Swim Weekend. Their participation displays a shared dedication to the lifesaving significance of studying to swim and international solidarity round defending, restoring and reconnecting folks with rivers and concrete waterways.

U.S. Olympic silver medalist Maritza Correia McClendon will take part in each occasions on behalf of the USA Swimming Foundation. The first Black American girl to make a U.S. Olympic swim workforce, she’s going to spotlight the Foundation’s partnership with the Chicago River Swim and their shared dedication to increasing entry to lifesaving swim classes and water-safety schooling.

“The Chicago River Swim is more than an unforgettable experience through one of our nation’s most iconic waterways; it’s an opportunity to create lasting impact,” mentioned Correia McClendon. “I’m proud to support its partnership with the USA Swimming Foundation, helping more children and families across Chicago gain lifesaving skills that can last a lifetime.”

Three-time U.S. Olympian and Olympic gold medalist Blake Pieroni will compete in Sunday’s one-mile Swim. A local of Chesterton, Indiana, Pieroni gained Olympic gold as a member of each the 2016 and 2020 U.S. 4×100-meter freestyle relay groups.

Dutch Olympic gold medalist Maarten van der Weijden will journey from the Netherlands to signify his nation and can take part in The Big Jump on Friday. A leukemia survivor who gained Olympic gold in open-water swimming, he has since used extraordinary endurance swims to lift tens of millions for most cancers analysis. Swim founder Doug McConnell was impressed by Amsterdam’s relationship with its waterways and the success of the Amsterdam City Swim, which demonstrated how an city waterway may change into the centerpiece of a world-class group occasion. McConnell typically credit that inspiration as a part of his imaginative and prescient for bringing a river swim to Chicago.

Mexican Olympic swimmer Jorge Andrés Iga César will signify Mexico in The Big Jump on Friday. Iga César competed on the 2024 Paris Games and holds Mexico’s nationwide document within the 200-meter freestyle. He has earned 4 Pan American Games medals, together with silver, and 19 medals on the Central American and Caribbean Games.

Two-time U.S. Paralympian and Tokyo silver medalist Ahalya Lettenberger will take part in The Big Jump and can compete within the one-mile Swim. Born in Chicago, Lettenberger started swimming at age 11 and went on to signify the United States on the Tokyo and Paris Paralympic Games.

Paralympic silver medalist Grace Nuhfer will take part in The Big Jump on Friday. The Indiana native gained silver on the 2024 Paris Games within the S13 100-meter butterfly earlier than turning into world champion within the occasion in 2025. She additionally earned two World Championships bronze medals in freestyle.

Current ice-swimming world champion Max Munson will take part in The Big Jump on Friday and compete within the one-mile Swim. Munson will be a part of the weekend from Prague, Czech Republic. An achieved pool, open-water and winter swimmer, he’s the reigning age-group ice-swimming world champion within the 50-meter and 100-meter freestyle and has set a number of Czech freestyle information.

The weekend will even welcome worldwide civic management, together with Lord Mayor of Dublin Daryl Barron, who will journey to Chicago to take part in Chicago River Swim weekend. Elected officers, celebrities, civic leaders and different particular company will even take part, with extra names to be introduced.

“Dublin and Chicago have a strong historical and cultural connection, and I am delighted to be in Chicago to experience the Chicago River Swim,” mentioned Lord Mayor of Dublin Daryl Barron. “In Dublin, our annual Dublin City Liffey Swim brings approximately 300 swimmers through the heart of the city in a unique challenge. Rivers are an important part of the life of a city, and both Chicago and Dublin are leading the way in showcasing them as important civic assets to be used and enjoyed by the people of our cities. I look forward to experiencing the Chicago River Swim and bringing some learnings back to Dublin.”

ABC7 CHICAGO LIVESTREAM 

ABC7 Chicago will stream the Swim stay on Sunday, September 20, from 6:30 to 10:00 a.m. Hosted by Greg Dutra and Jasmine Minor, the printed will showcase swimmers taking part in one- and two-mile occasions alongside the principle stem of the Chicago River and have interviews with athletes, civic leaders and different particular company all through the morning. Audiences can watch on ABC7Chicago.com, Disney+ beneath the Live tab by choosing ABC7 Chicago, and ABC7’s Connected TV apps on Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku. 

SWIMMING FOR A PURPOSE 

Chicago River Swim weekend raises funds for ALS analysis by way of A Long Swim and helps swim instruction and water security schooling for kids in underserved Chicago communities. McConnell based A Long Swim after shedding his father and sister to ALS. The group has since raised greater than $3.5 million to advance collaborative ALS analysis.

The weekend will even create a strong second for the ALS group. Through ALS United, A Long Swim related with Jeff Birkels, who resides with ALS. During Sunday’s Chicago River Swim, swimmer Paul Sommer will pull Birkels on a raft for the complete two-mile course, giving him a unprecedented alternative to expertise the river alongside the swimmers supporting the struggle in opposition to the illness.

ABOUT THE CHICAGO RIVER SWIM PRESENTED BY THE CITY OF CHICAGO AND MAYOR BRANDON JOHNSON

The Chicago River Swim offered by the City of Chicago and Mayor Brandon Johnson is a charitable open-water occasion that brings collectively swimmers, advocates, civic leaders, environmental companions, and group members to have a good time the Chicago River and its extraordinary transformation. The City of Chicago and Mayor Brandon Johnson are serving as Presenting Partner, reflecting the City’s management in restoring the river and increasing protected public entry to its waterways. Their help enabled an occasion of this scale to happen within the middle of downtown, reinforcing the river’s transformation and establishing the Chicago River Swim as a rising civic custom. Launched in 2025, the Swim marked a historic second as the primary organized open-water swim within the Chicago River in 98 years. The occasion celebrates a long time of environmental funding, coverage management, and group effort which have made the river protected for human contact and renewed public use. Created by A Long Swim, the Chicago River Swim raises essential funds for ALS analysis and expands entry to swim schooling and water security for youth in underserved communities, whereas positioning the Chicago River as a shared civic asset and an emblem of Chicago’s environmental progress. For extra info, go to ChicagoRiverSwim.org.

A Long Swim is a nonprofit that designs and manages open-water swimming occasions to lift funds for ALS analysis. Founded by siblings Doug McConnell and Ellen McConnell Blakeman after their father handed away from ALS, and Ellen was later identified with the illness, the group has raised greater than $3.5 million for ALS analysis at Ozdinler Lab of Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Doug, a world-class marathon swimmer, has conquered a few of the most difficult waters on the earth, together with the English Channel, Manhattan Island, the Catalina Channel, and the Molokai Channel, utilizing his abilities to lift funds for the struggle in opposition to ALS.