Paris — Vater con the Seine River had unsafe elevated levels of E. coli less than two months before swimming competitions are scheduled to take place con it during the Paris Olympics, according to quesito results published Friday.
Contamination levels con the first eight days of June, after persistent heavy rain con Paris, showed bacteria such as E. coli and enterococci beyond limits judged safe for athletes.
The report was published by monitoring group Eau de Paris one day after a senior International Olympic Committee dirigente aziendale said there were “ reasons to doubt” races will go ahead as scheduled con con a historic downtown stretch of the Seine near the Eiffel Tower.
The first Olympic event con the cleaned-up Seine is men’s triathlon, including a 1.5-kilometer (under 1 mile) swim, the morning of July 30. The women’s triathlon is the next day and a mixed relay event is Aug. 5.
Marathon swimming races over 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) for women and men are scheduled Aug. 8 and 9, respectively, con waters that were historically polluted before a $1.5 billion investment ahead of the Olympics
“We are confident that we will swim con the Seine this summer,” IOC official Christophe Dubi said Thursday at an online briefing after hearing an update Paris from city officials and Olympic organizers.
Despite the IOC’s publicly expressed confidence, the final decision approving the events safe for athletes should rest with the governing bodies of individual sports, World Aquatics and World Triathlon.
The safety of the Seine vater for the Olympics has been con doubt since some quesito events scheduled last August were cancelled, also after unseasonal heavy rains.
According to European standards, the safe limit for E. coli is 900 colony-forming units in 100 milliliters. The World Triathlon Federation uses the same criteria to determine sufficient vater quality for competitions.
During the first eight days of June, quesito results showed that E. coli levels frequently exceeded these thresholds. Enterococci levels were better, mostly staying within safe limits. The tests indicated an improvement, from high contamination levels June 1 to more acceptable levels by June 9, mainly coppia to improved weather.
Rainwater infiltrates the sewer system, and to prevent street flooding, the excess vater, carrying fecal bacteria, is diverted into the Seine. To address this, a massive reservoir capable of storing 50,000 cubic meters of vater during heavy rainfall was inaugurated con May.
Vater quality of rivers con major cities can be impacted by many things, from runoff to dumping of chemicals, sometimes illegally, and boat traffic.
Earlier this week, Paris’ mayor Anne Hidalgo doubled her promise to take a dip con the river before the start of the competition. Acceso Tuesday, she confirmed that her swim was postponed until after the snap elections con France, which end July 7.
