All the Paralympic Games para-triathlon events, which were due to take place today in Paris, have been postponed by one day due to “a deterioration in the quality of the water in the Seine” caused by bad weather..
The organizers announced it last night. The 11 scheduled events, which include a swimming race in the Parisian river, should be held on Monday but only if the water tests are positive. The latest tests, in fact, show “a deterioration in the quality of the water in the Seine following the rain of the last two days,” according to a press release from the organizers, after a meeting between representatives of Paris-2024, the World Triathlon Federation and the authorities involved in carrying out the water quality tests. The decision to move the race to Monday “is taken on the condition that the next water analyses comply with the thresholds established by the World Triathlon for swimming“, the press release continues. The organizers specify that the priority “is the health of the athletes, and that in these conditions the para-triathlon races cannot take place today” Sunday.
The Olympics have been met with controversy and accusations from athletes who have suffered health problems after competing in the Seine. The Paralympic triathlon races, which start and finish at the Pont Alexandre III, were originally scheduled to take place over two days, September 1 and 2. The organizing committee had already announced on Thursday that they would be grouped together on September 1 due to weather forecasts. Two training sessions in the Seine were able to take place on Thursday and Friday morning, before a final session was cancelled on Saturday as a precaution. The race course consists of a 750-meter swim. The quality of the Seine’s water has been a hot topic for weeks: swimming in the Parisian river should be part of the legacy of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. During the Olympics, several triathlon and open water swimming training sessions were cancelled, and the men’s triathlon was also postponed by a day due to the water being unsuitable for swimming. The culprit is heavy rain that dumps excess sewage into the river. To give the green light to the competitions, the authorities closely monitor two levels of fecal bacteria: E. coli and enterococci.