The bid to stage the planned open water swims in the River Seine for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games triathlon appears set to go right down to the wire next month.
The 1.4bn/1.18bn/$1.5bn cleanup operation to make the waterway swimmable for the first time in a century continues, as yet without the desired results.
Tests last week showed the water in the Seine was not yet up to the standard required for swimming – with the Games just over a month away. The results of recent tests on the water (carried out on June 16) showed the presence of two kinds of fecal bacteria, including E. coli. Levels of E. coli were too high to allow swimming at four different locations on the river.
On Wednesday (June 26), Marc Guillaume, prefect of the Île-de-France region, again referenced the heavy rains which have severely hampered the bid to make the water swimmable so far, and admitted that “summer weather” is required to improve water quality.
