A man walks along the Seine River during the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 28, 2024, in Paris, France.
13:14 JST, July 30, 2024
PARIS (Reuters) – The men’s triathlon at the Paris Olympics will not go ahead as planned on Tuesday because pollution levels in the Seine River remain high, World Triathlon said in a statement, a blow to organisers and a further uncertainty for athletes.
The race was moved to 10:45 a.m. (08:45 GMT) on Wednesday, immediately following the women’s event, which was scheduled for 8:00 a.m. that day.
Organisers had previously been confident that water quality would improve before the race after heavy rains last Friday and Saturday polluted the river.
“Despite the improvement in water quality in recent hours, the values at some points in the swimming course are still above acceptable limits,” they said on Tuesday morning.
“Paris 2024 and the World Triathlon Team reiterate that their priority is the health of the athletes.”
If bacteria levels are still too high on Wednesday morning, both the men’s and women’s races will likely be moved to Friday, the reserve day for the events.
If the water quality is still not good enough on Friday, the swimming event will be cancelled and the athletes will participate in a duathlon instead.
For the mixed triathlon relay on August 5, August 6 is the reserve day.
Authorities in Paris have pledged to make the Seine suitable for swimming as a key part of the Games, spending 1.4 billion euros ($1.51 billion) on wastewater infrastructure to contain sewage and minimize discharges into the water.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo took a dip in the river herself earlier this month in an attempt to convince doubters.
The gamble that the river would be clean enough on the day of the triathlon was never certain, especially since water quality varies greatly from day to day.
Rain significantly increases concentrations of infection-causing bacteria such as E. coli and enterococci.
Seth Rider, one of 55 triathletes competing in the men’s race, told reporters he took unconventional measures to prepare for exposure to bacteria.
“We know there is going to be some exposure to E. coli, so I am trying to increase my E. coli threshold by exposing myself a little bit to E. coli in my daily life,” the American athlete said at a news conference on Saturday.
The Olympic triathlon course is designed to create the biggest possible wow factor, with the river swim playing a key role.
After jumping into the Seine from a pontoon next to the Alexandre III Bridge, the athletes race past the Musée d’Orsay and the Grand Palais during the cycling and running events, before returning to the starting point.
As the competitors cross the finish line on the bridge, they are surrounded by stone columns topped with gilded bronze statues of Pegasus. In the background is the golden dome of the Invalides Monument from the early 18th century.
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