Joe McConnell
Despite $1.53 billion being earmarked to clean up the perennially polluted Seine, there were rumors for months before the Paris Games about whether it was safe enough to swim the triathlons and 10,000-meter marathon in the river.
Mayor of Paris Anna Hidalgo They went swimming on July 17th and declared that France’s most famous body of water is ready to be used, but since the Olympics started it has been a real mess.
On Monday 29 July, the swimming competitions organised by triathletes to familiarise themselves with the Seine were cancelled, as the competent authorities cited poor water quality as the cause, caused by the runoff from the heavy rains over the weekend (which began in earnest during the opening ceremony on 26 July).
The men’s triathlon was postponed a day and rescheduled for after the women’s on July 31 after organizers deemed bacteria levels too high for a safe swim.
Both triathlons took place on July 31; tests carried out that day found that levels of Escherichia coli and intestinal enterococci were low enough to qualify the water as “excellent quality,” under the European Union’s Bathing Water Directive.
But speculation about the dangers of the waters resumed after two athletes who had competed in the triathlon withdrew from the mixed relay, citing their respective illnesses (neither of which has been definitively linked to swimming in the Seine).
The women’s and men’s 10,000 meters are still scheduled for Aug. 8 and 9, but training was canceled on Aug. 6 after tests showed bacteria levels were once again too high.
