News article
Paris 2024 organisers blame climate crisis for fluctuating Seine quality levels
The men’s and women’s Olympic triathlons were able to take place yesterday (July 31), as the quality of the River Seine in Paris was finally deemed acceptable.
Paris 2024 is currently gripping France and the globe, as the world’s best athletes take part in their respective sports until August 11. Organisers have been ambitious with their plans, with the Opening Ceremony taking place outside of a stadium, and an Olympic event held in the Seine for the first time. Swimming in the river has also been prohibited for more than 100 years because of high levels of pollution.
It almost looked like it wouldn’t happen. The men’s triathlon was due to take place on Tuesday (July 30), but heavy rainfall in the French capital caused the E. coli levels to rise meaning it was unsafe for swimming. Training sessions had also been cancelled earlier in the Games.
The men’s event was postponed until yesterday morning, with the water quality deemed compliant by World Triathlon following an analysis in the early hours. The women’s triathlon took place first, with a gold medal secured by France’s Cassandre Beaugrand, a silver for Switzerland’s Julie Herron and a bronze for Great Britain’s Beth Potter.
“We’ve gone from heavy rain to extreme heat in very few days. So it’s actually hard to control how it can affect the quality of the river.”
The men’s triathlon followed, with Great Britain’s Alex Yee winning gold, New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde claiming silver and France’s Leo Bergere in third.
Organisers had revealed that roughly €1.4bn had been spent on a regeneration project to improve the quality of the River Seine ahead of the Olympics and Paralympics.
Following Tuesday’s postponement, organisers blamed the climate crisis for the increased rainfall which caused the quality of the Seine to fall.
“We are living in the 21st century where unfortunately there are far more meteorological events that happen which are beyond the control of the organisers,” said Aurélie Merle, the Paris 2024 Director of Sports, according to the Guardian.
“We’ve gone from heavy rain to extreme heat in very few days. So it’s actually hard to control how it can affect the quality of the river.”
Further events are still yet to be held in the Seine including the triathlon mixed relay on August 5, the Olympic marathon swimming on August 8 and 9, and the Para-triathlon event at the Paralympics, which will run between August 28 and September 8.
Image: Solen Feyissa on Unsplash