In the heart of winter a dense mist blankets the Songhua River as it winds through Jilin City of northeast China Jilin ...

Even as the mercury dropped below freezing, enthusiasm soared among about a dozen hardy swimmers during an annual ritual in ...

This is a collection of photos chosen by AP photo editors.

A man chats with residents in winter clothings as he prepares to swim in a pool carved from ice on the frozen Songhua river in Harbin in northeastern China's Heilongjiang province, Tuesday ...

Gruff men shout over an angry motor as they float huge blocks of ice towards a rusty conveyor belt on the bank of a frozen river in northeast China. Every winter, dozens of workers brave sub-zero ...

The swimmers trained daily throughout the year for this. They first carved out a pool in the Songhua River, breaking the 10-centimeter (4-inch) thick layer of ice that had formed again overnight ...