A co-ordinated search for a missing 32-year-old swimmer last seen swimming in the Fraser River early Saturday morning has been called off.

The Burnaby man disappeared after a group of young men decided to have an early morning swimming contest in the dark waters near the beach off of Old Yale Road in Surrey.

"After several hours of searching ... the tough decision was made to call off the search," said Surrey RCMP Staff Sergeant Dale Carr in a email.

RCMP and the Canadian Coast Guard began the search after a 2 a.m. PT call from a group of young people at Brownsville Beach. They said their friend slipped under water and did not resurface.

"The group had started a bonfire and were consuming alcoholic beverages, when the decision was made to jump into the cold, swift moving waters of the Fraser River and attempt to swim around the SkyTrain bridge pillar and back to shore," said the RCMP release.

Crews began searching for the man around 2 a.m. Saturday, after companions said he didn't resurface after a swim. (Gian-Paolo Mendoza/CBC)

A Canadian Coast Guard hovercraft and dive team were dispatched around 4 a.m. to help search for the man.

RCMP officers were seen boarding the hovercraft around 6 a.m., observing a spot near the base of one of the bridge pillars.

Police are not releasing the swimmer's name until his family have been notified. Foul play is not suspected.