The men’s triathlon event at the Paris 2024 Olympics has been postponed from Tuesday to Wednesday, the same day as the women’s event, due to pollution detected in the water of the Seine River, organizers said.
Heavy rains on Friday and Saturday in the French capital have degraded the quality of the river’s water, with “values still above acceptable limits” in “certain places” along the course, the organising committee and the International Triathlon Union announced in a joint statement.
The training sessions for triathletes to familiarise themselves with the waters of the Seine, scheduled for Sunday and Monday, had already been cancelled due to pollution.
The men’s event has been rescheduled for Wednesday, just after the women’s competition, provided that further measurements show that the water quality is suitable for swimming, organizers added.
If the water quality is still insufficient, the tests could be postponed until Friday, they said.
“Analysis carried out on the Seine today has shown water quality levels that do not offer sufficient guarantees to allow the event to take place,” said the organising committee and the International Triathlon Federation.
“Unfortunately, meteorological phenomena beyond our control, such as the rain that fell in Paris on 26 and 27 July, may affect the quality of the water and force us to postpone the event for health reasons,” the organisations added, noting that “the priority is the health of the athletes.”
“Despite the improvement in water quality in recent hours, the values recorded in certain places along the swimming course are still above acceptable limits,” they added.
Since 2016, authorities have spent more than 1.4 billion euros (US$1.52 billion at current exchange rates) on infrastructure projects to reduce pollution in the Seine and its tributary, the Marne, and thus allow bathing and Olympic events to take place.
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– 2024-08-03 23:03:53
