Polish man turns snowman as he immerses himself in the cold stuff for record time
A Polish man turned himself into a real life snowman to shiver his way to a world record.
Damian Kasprzyk fully immersed himself in the cold stuff to claim the title for longest time spent in direct full body contact with snow (male) – a whopping 2 hr 12 min 12 sec.
He did it in Szlachtowa, Poland, on 21 February.
The 41-year-old said: “My journey into extreme challenges is deeply connected with Valerjan Romanovski, a multiple Guinness World Records title holder. He was the one who prepared me and came up with the idea for me to attempt the ice record.
“This recent snow record was actually my third successful record attempt - my previous ones involved full-body contact with ice and full immersion in ice water. For this specific attempt, I approached the record alongside Maria Bodaj (known as "Mary Icebreaker"), who also broke the record in the women's category.”
Maria's record for longest duration full body contact with ice (female) stands at 3 hr 33 min 33 sec. She's also from Poland.
Valerjan (also Poland) currently holds the records for longest duration submerged in ice water (male) at 58 mins and farthest distance cycled off-road in 12 hours (male) at 314.65 km (195.51 miles).
Damian is also the current holder for longest duration full body contact with ice (male) at 5 hr 1 min 33 sec, a record Valerjan previously held in 2021 with a time of 3 hr 28 sec.
Dad-of-two Damian joked he’s predisposed to the cold thanks to his job at Thermo King, a company that manufactures temperature-controlled transport systems.
He trained for his latest attempt under Valerjan’s guidance, saying “he has been instrumental in preparing me mentally and physically for what it takes to endure such extreme conditions”.
But while Damian has immersed himself in ice and freezing water before, this was his first time attempting direct contact with the snow for a challenge like this.
He told us: “The cold has never been something that scares me, though I always approach these extreme challenges with immense humility. I never take it lightly. That is why safety is always my number one priority. I always ensure that medical professionals from AMBIELANS are on-site to monitor everything and keep me safe.”
He added: “Given that this was my very first time attempting a contact-with-snow challenge, the final time I achieved was very good! That said, I am competitive with myself, and I definitely want to improve upon this time in the future.”
Read more records about people pushing themselves to the extreme in our Human Body section.
Damian started his cold-plunging journey by winter swimming and taking ice baths, slowly increasing his immunity to teeth-chattering temperatures.
He said: “Over time, I discovered that bonding with the cold gives me a profound peace of mind. It allows me to test where my true limits of endurance lie. I do this out of pure curiosity and a desire to push the boundaries of human capability, rather than just for the sake of holding records.”
Damian is confident this won’t be the last record he breaks as he’s already keen to take on more challenges.
But he added: “I would really like to emphasize that I don't do this just for the titles or records themselves - it’s about curiosity and exploring human limits. Most importantly, I want to reiterate that safety always comes first, which is why I am so grateful to the AMBIELANS medical team for watching over me, and to my wife and two children for their unwavering support.”