(30 Jul 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Paris – 30 July 2024
1. SOUNDBITE (English) Alex Turnbull, The Associated Press:
++STARTS AND ENDS ON SOUNDBITE++
"Still no swimming in the Seine at the Paris 2024 Olympics this year. Organizers said this morning that they’ve had to postpone the swimming leg of the competition because the quality of the water down here just doesn’t meet health standards and they’re now hoping that they can organize it tomorrow, Wednesday. Now the key player here is going to be the weather. We’ve gone from torrential rain during the opening ceremony last Friday to scorching heat in just about three or four days. But that’s a good thing. I mean, dry weather is a good thing. Rain causes levels of E.coli and bacteria in the Seine to rise, so organizers have their fingers crossed that it stays dry. However, and this is the issue, the French weather service is forecasting storms for tonight and light rain for tomorrow. It may be so that the Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and her friends were the first and last people to take a dip in the Seine this summer."
STORYLINE:
Concerns about water quality in the Seine River continued to postpone the men’s triathlon Tuesday, with officials hoping the swimming portion of the race will be able to go forward in the long-polluted waterway in the coming days following an expensive cleanup effort.
The Associated Press explains what is next for the triathlon.
Organizers said they will try to hold the men’s triathlon Wednesday instead.
Storms or rain are forecast Tuesday night through Thursday, which could complicate efforts to reschedule the events because rain generally causes bacteria levels in the Seine to rise.
Paris experienced a downpour during the Olympic opening ceremony Friday, with rain persisting into Saturday.
The delays come after Olympic organizers and city officials had expressed confidence in recent days that bacteria levels would improve as skies cleared and temperatures warmed this week, but that apparently wasn’t sufficient to ensure the athletes’ safety.
The sun’s ultraviolet rays can kill the bacteria and lower levels, and Tuesday is hot and sunny.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo very publicly took a swim in the river two weeks ago, along with Paris 2024 chief Tony Estanguet.
The men’s triathlon is now scheduled to start at 10:45 a.m. Wednesday, which may make heat more of a factor with the event finishing at the hottest part of the day.
World Triathlon is planning to provide ice and water stations along the course for the athletes.
The women’s race is set to go forward at 8 a.m. as originally planned.
If the river isn’t safe for swimming after delays, that part of the race would be scrapped and only the cycling and running portions would go forward.
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