ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Crowds of people ran from Ontario Beach Park into Lake Ontario on Sunday at noon to raise money for the Special Olympics New York.

Participants told News10NBC they were “freezin’ for a reason”. The annual Rochester Polar Plunge raised over $304,000 for Special Olympics athletes, surpassing its goal.

Special Olympics New York provides year-round training and competition to over 66,000 athletes. The Rochester area hosts over 40 Special Olympics events annually.