SwimSilvestre

Spain's running calendar closes every December with the festive San Silvestre races, but in Mataró that year-end tradition was taken out into the cold Mediterranean waters. The SwimSilvestre is an open water swimming race held at Platja del Varador in Mataró, along the Catalan coast in Spain. Organised by xswim project, the event was established in 2012 as an open water counterpart to the classic year-end footraces, pioneering the concept of concluding the sporting season in the open sea. The race course is laid out as a single 1,500-metre triangle that begins and finishes at the same spot on the sand of Platja del Varador. Swimmers dive from the shore into the open water and navigate the triangle in a clockwise direction, keeping two large turn buoys on their right side as they loop across the bay.

Sighting off the buoys through the crisp winter air, you settle into a steady stroke while the urban waterfront of Mataró unfolds behind you across the surf. Dipping into the December Mediterranean means meeting sea temperatures that hover around 13 degrees, a sharp shock to the skin that calls for real mental focus. In past editions, however, swimmers have enjoyed bright, sunny skies and remarkably calm sea conditions, with only a light swell breaking across the shallows at the start and finish line. Once you cross the sand, the chill gives way to warm comfort. Supported by the local Centre Natació Mataró, the race welcomes swimmers straight into the club's indoor heated pool and changing facilities, turning the post-race recovery into a shared celebration in warm water. That sense of community extends beyond the club walls, as the event runs in solidarity with Càritas Mataró.

Costa del Maresme: sheltered waters beneath the coastal range

The race unfolds along the Costa del Maresme, a distinct coastal territory stretching from Montgat north to the mouth of the Tordera River in Malgrat de Mar. Across this 55-kilometre sweep of shoreline, visitors find 54 separate beaches and caves fronting the Mediterranean. What makes this coastline particularly reliable for a winter crossing is the barrier formed by the Catalan Coastal Range. Rising directly behind the low coastal plain, these inland ridges shield the shore from biting northern winds, keeping the sea surface relatively settled when more exposed stretches of coast might suffer heavy chop.

Ancient Iluro: Roman coastal baths and dolphin mosaics

Standing on the sand before the start, you look back toward the shore. Less than a kilometre from the race beach, the Roman town of Iluro was established on a low rise overlooking the coastal plain. The modern coastal N-II road continues to trace the path of the Via Augusta, the great Roman highway, today. Seasonal torrential streams marked the edges of the ancient town, while imperial cemeteries were set outside its walls along the banks of the Riera. Water culture was central to local life: archaeologists in Mataró uncovered the remains of a first-century BC bath house alongside a grand Roman public bath complex. Perched on an urban rise, that Roman bathhouse featured two pools built expressly to look out over the sea.

Port de Mataró: lateen sails and transatlantic shipyards

Up through the mid-nineteenth century, Mataró ranked among the most active maritime centres along the Catalan coast, serving as a hub for shipyards and a departure point for transatlantic voyages to America. Its mercantile prominence was so significant that the crown designated Mataró capital of a maritime province between 1750 and 1867. In 1965, engineers erected a major breakwater to halt the alarming retreat of the sandy coastline. Today, the harbor mouth extends 80 metres wide with a draft of six metres, guided by the Mataró lighthouse that flashes green four times every 16 seconds and shines out five nautical miles into the Mediterranean. Inside the marina rests the *San Ramon*, a traditional lateen-rigged vessel built in 1904.

Platja del Varador: golden sand and urban seafront

Platja del Varador provides a wide, straight amphitheatre of golden sand right in front of the urban heart of Mataró. Municipal cleaning sweeps keep the wide beach tidy day after day, providing swimmers with a clean, open shoreline to drop their kit and warm up along the surf. In typical fashion for the northern coastal fringe above Barcelona, the beach is separated from the town streets by the railway line that skirts the edge of the sand. On dry land, Varador serves as an active sporting beach with volleyball nets, permanent basketball hoops, and a beach soccer pitch. Chiringuitos stand directly on the sand serving drinks and plates, offering competitors and spectators an easy place to gather once everyone has dried off.