Chicago – September 11, 2026 -- The city of Chicago and Mayor Brandon Johnson are bringing back the Chicago River Swim for a second year, expanding the event from 500 to 750 qualified swimmers and reviving "The Big Jump" as part of a three-day weekend from September 18 to 20, 2026. Registration is open now at ChicagoRiverSwim.org for both the swim and the jump.
The Big Jump kicks off the weekend on September 18
The event gives registered participants a sanctioned chance to leap into the river while raising money for ALS research and youth swim education. Mayor Johnson will serve as master of ceremonies alongside Dutch Olympic gold medalist Maarten van der Weijden, Czech ice-swimming world champion Max Munson, Dublin Mayor Daryl Barron, former Chicago Bears player Charles Tillman, and Grammy-winning producer DJ White Shadow.
The main swim happens Sunday, September 20
The Chicago River Swim, launched in 2025 with 263 swimmers in the first organized open-water event in the river in 98 years, returns with one-mile and two-mile races. The city raised the participant cap from 500 to 750 and reopened registration for a limited number of spots.
Olympic and Paralympic athletes are traveling from four countries
American Olympic silver medalist Maritza Correia McClendon will swim both races representing the USA Swimming Foundation. Triple U.S. Olympian and gold medalist Blake Pieroni will race the one-mile event Sunday. Mexican Olympic swimmer Jorge Andrés Iga César, who holds Mexico's national 200-meter freestyle record, and two-time U.S. Paralympian and Tokyo silver medalist Ahalya Lettenberger will join The Big Jump on Friday. Paralympic silver medalist Grace Nuhfer, a 2025 world champion in the 100-meter butterfly S13, will also participate Friday.
Water quality will be monitored throughout the weekend
Experts from the University of Illinois Chicago will test water quality before and during the event. The weekend builds on decades of investment from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, Friends of the Chicago River, the Shedd Aquarium, the Chicago Park District, and other partners.
Mayor Johnson said the river "belongs to all of Chicago" and called the event a chance to support ALS research while expanding access to swim safety training. Doug McConnell, founder of A Long Swim and the Chicago River Swim, said last year's event proved swimming could return to the river on a citywide scale, and this year's expansion offers more ways to participate while funding ALS research and swim lessons for children.