Olympics-Organisers confident triathlon will go ahead despite rain impact on Seine

By Julien Pretot

PARIS (Reuters) -Paris 2024 organisers are confident the triathlon events will take place as scheduled on Tuesday even though recent rainfall might lead to Sunday's swimming training session being cancelled due to concerns over the water quality in the Seine.

"The rain that has fallen on Paris over the last 24 hours is likely to impact the quality of the water in the Seine over the next 24 to 36 hours," organisers said in a statement to Reuters.

"Depending on current water quality levels and the conditions expected over the next 24 hours, it is possible that the familiarisation (athlete training) scheduled for Sunday 28 July at 8 a.m. may be cancelled."

A decision on whether the training will be held will be made at 4 a.m. (0200 GMT) on Sunday, with Paris authorities expected to provide new figures on water quality.

"We are nonetheless confident in our ability to organise the events as planned from 30 July. Given the weather forecast for the next 48 hours, we expect the water quality to return to below limits within the next 24 to 36 hours," the statement said.

"As observed in July, with summer conditions (more sunshine, higher temperatures, prolonged absence of rain) water quality is improving significantly."

On Friday, data showed that the Seine was suitable for swimming six days out of seven between July 17-23.

Data published by city and regional authorities showed the concentrations of enterococci and E.coli bacteria were above legal thresholds on July 21 at the Pont Alexandre III bridge, where athletes will take to the water.

The French capital has been working on cleaning up the Seine so people can swim in it again, as was the case during the 1900 Paris Olympics. A sewer problem last summer, however, led to the cancellation of a pre-Olympics swimming event.

The triathlon and marathon swimming legs of the Olympics, which run from July 26 to Aug. 11, are scheduled to be held in the Seine.

Decisions on whether to run Olympic events will be taken the night before, and early that same morning, with a technical committee including athletes, international federations, regional authorities and the meteorological office, Meteo France, making the call.

If the river is not deemed to be suitable, organisers have contingency plans. The marathon swimming will take place at Vaires-sur-Marne, where the rowing and canoeing events are held, and the triathlon will be turned into a duathlon.

(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Alison Williams, Ken Ferris and Ed Osmond)