Olympics-Organisers confident triathlon will go ahead despite rain impact on Seine
Adds detail
By Julien Pretot
PARIS, July 27 (Reuters) -Paris 2024 organisers areconfident the triathlon events will take place as scheduled on Tuesday even though recent rainfall might lead to Sunday's swimming training sessionbeing cancelled due to concerns over the water quality in the Seine.
"The rain that has fallen on Paris over the last 24 hours is likely to impact the quality of the water in the Seine over the next 24 to 36 hours," organisers said in a statement to Reuters.
"Depending on current water quality levels and the conditions expected over the next 24 hours, it is possible that the familiarisation (athlete training) scheduled for Sunday 28 July at 8 a.m. may be cancelled."
A decision on whether the training will be held will be made at 4 a.m. (0200 GMT) on Sunday, with Paris authorities expected to provide new figures on water quality.
"We are nonetheless confident in our ability to organise the events as planned from 30 July. Given the weather forecast for the next 48 hours, we expect the water quality to return to below limits within the next 24 to 36 hours," the statement said.
"As observed in July, with summer conditions (more sunshine, higher temperatures, prolonged absence of rain) water quality is improving significantly."
On Friday, data showed that the Seine was suitable for swimming six days out of seven between July 17-23.
Data published by city and regional authorities showed the concentrations of enterococci and E.coli bacteria were above legal thresholds on July 21 at the Pont Alexandre III bridge, where athletes will take to the water.
The French capital has been working on cleaning up the Seine so people can swim in it again, as was the case during the 1900 Paris Olympics. A sewer problem last summer, however, led to the cancellation of a pre-Olympics swimming event.
The triathlon and marathon swimming legs of the Olympics, which run from July 26 to Aug. 11, are scheduled to be held in the Seine.
Decisions on whether to run Olympic events will be taken the night before, and early that same morning, with a technical committee including athletes, international federations, regional authorities and the meteorological office, Meteo France, making the call.
If the river is not deemed to be suitable, organisers have contingency plans. The marathon swimming will take place at Vaires-sur-Marne, where the rowing and canoeing events are held, and the triathlon will be turned into a duathlon.
Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Alison Williams, Ken Ferris and Ed Osmond
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
