Russia’s Putin takes traditional Epiphany dip in icy waters

Dozens of Russians, including President Vladimir Putin, braved freezing cold waters in the Moscow region, participating in an Orthodox Christian ritual to mark the feast of Epiphany. Russian state television showed Putin taking three dips in a cross-shaped Epiphany bath hole. With temperatures around minus 20 Celsius, participants in the city of Istra plunged into an ice-cold lake which was lightened with colourful lights and covered with mist.