Olympic Swimmer Hospitalized Day After Competing in Seine River

Irish Olympic swimmer Daniel Wiffen was forced to miss the Closing Ceremony as he was hospitalized shortly after swimming through Paris’ notoriously polluted Seine River . Wiffen won two medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics, taking a bronze for his performance in the 1500m men’s freestyle swimming competition and a gold medal for his in the 800m freestyle competition.

The 23-year-old was set to serve as flag bearer at Saturday’s Closing Ceremony, but his illness forbade him from attending.

“Thanks, everyone who reached out,” Wiffen began a statement on X (formerly Twitter). “I’m incredibly disappointed to miss out on the opportunity to be flag bearer last night,” he added, before going on to explain his absence.

“Yesterday I rushed to hospital, as I was very unwell, with a bug that I am being treated for, and am feeling better now,” Wiffen continued. “I hope everyone enjoys the evening, and I hope to be well enough to see everyone when we get home.”

Though Wiffen didn’t elaborate on the cause of his illness, there is speculation that it had to do with pollution in the Seine. Prior to the 2024 Olympics, swimming in the river had been banned for more than 100 years due to bacterial contamination. Organizers poured about $1.5 billion into a plan to clean up the Seine, culminating in Paris’ mayor swimming about 300 feet through the water to prove its safety. Many swimmers spoke out about the water’s horrendous quality, which had athletes guzzling Coca-Cola to prevent bacterial infections.

After the August 9 race, Wiffen classified his swim through the Seine has “probably one of the worst things I’ve ever done,” vowing to “never do it again.”

“I’m retiring from open water,” Wiffen told RTE . “You’ll see me out in the nightclubs tonight with some Guinness,” he joked.