Four triathlon training sessions suffered the same fate, and last week the men’s triathlon had to be postponed by a day. Some athletes complain about these “stops and starts,” while others no longer want to express their opinions on the issue.
These Olympic events on the Seine are a prelude to Parisian swimming in the summer of 2025, promised by Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo.
But the Seine, the star of the Olympics, is often unsuitable for swimming for ten days.
Of the eight days athletes must dive there during training or competition, only two are open for swimming: July 31 for the men’s and women’s triathlons and August 5 for the mixed triathlon relay.
International sports federations grant approval based on bacteriological analysis (E. coli and enterococci), usually 24 hours before, but also take weather factors into account.
In theory, the decision was taken in the evening, hours before training or a match, at a meeting between the organizing committee, the federation and its doctors, Météo-France, Paris City Hall and the Île-de-France department.
frustration
In explaining the cancellation of Tuesday’s training, Cojo and FINA, the world swimming federation, expressed “an abundance of caution,” according to a joint press release.
They explained that the cancellation was due to unsatisfactory results from samples collected at noon on August 4.
However, at the same time, on the 5th, the mixed triathlon relay swimming competition was indeed held there. But Cojo assured that the latest analysis, carried out on game day, was up to par. It can sometimes be difficult to navigate the ever-changing approach.
Some athletes also lamented the uncertainty surrounding training and competition. French triathlon chief Benjamin Metz expressed “a little anger” and “frustration” among athletes.
The Olympic Committee (COIB) and the Belgian Football Federation called for “lessons to be learned” for the next Olympic Games so that “training days, match days and competition formats are guaranteed” and “there is no uncertainty for the athletes”.
Marten van Riel, a Belgian triathlete who placed fourth at Tokyo 2021, fumed: “If the priority had been the health of the athletes, the race would have been moved to another location long ago. , we are just puppets.
They told AFP that health authorities had not received “any health reports that may be related to testing of natural waters”.
“False news”
Martin Fourcade, president of the Olympic organizing committee, explained on Monday that athletes are “the first ones who want to dive.” “We’re here to make sure it’s done under acceptable health conditions,” he said.
Béatrice Mouthon, a former triathlete who competed in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, told AFP: “If we had these (hygiene) standards, we would never swim in the Rio Bay.”
Open water swimmer Marc-Antoine Olivier is eager to dive in this “mysterious spot” on Friday.
In addition to these analyses, the cleanliness of the Seine is also the subject of numerous “fake news” on social networks: a fake front page of Liberation, a fictitious study showing that the Seine is dirtier than the Ganges…. ..
But the fact remains that despite the huge investment in cleaning up the river, the operation of Olympic swimming is more complicated than expected.
If the triathlon cannot be moved, there is a plan B for open water swimming: the canoe-kayak venue in Varès-sur-Marne.
