Wobbly Seine Water Quality, Sickened Athletes Place Remaining Olympic Swimming Events in Doubt

Thought Question: How would you feel about participating in an Olympic sporting event if there were potential health risks involved?

Organizers scrapped a scheduled 10K practice marathon run in Paris’ Seine River Tuesday. The move comes amid safety concerns prompted by athletes falling ill after swimming in the polluted waterway. The ordeal has sparked new fears about whether other scheduled Olympic swimming events can take place in the river.   

Health experts haven’t linked these illnesses to the Seine. But at least one national team isn’t taking any chances. Belgium pulled out of the mixed triathlon relay Monday. Switzerland changed its lineup for the race. Athletes from each team got sick after going into the water. Belgium’s Claire Michel sought treatment at a clinic in the Olympic Village. And Switzerland’s Adrien Briffod suffered a “gastrointestinal infection,” Swiss Olympic officials said.   

Tyler Mislawchuck of Canada was seen on TV getting sick after a triathlon competition last week. Mislawchuck, though, blamed his brief illness on the heat and not the Seine. 

Tests on the water run before the triathlon events showed that the river was safe enough to swim in. That's according to Olympic leaders. But more recent tests showed the Seine’s water quality had worsened. That led organizers to cancel a practice swim. Marathon events are still scheduled to take place Thursday and Friday. 

E. coli and enterococci have been found in the Seine. Both are forms of fecal bacteria. Swimming in the Seine had been banned for over 100 years. But prior to the Games, the city of Paris spent $1.5 billion to upgrade its wastewater treatment system. It's designed to curb sewage runoff into the river. So far, the results have been mixed.

Many swimmers aren’t deterred by the dirty river. 

"It’s the Olympics.” Stephen Meyers told The Washington Post. He's the USA Triathlon spokesman. “‘We’re going to swim no matter what,’” he said.

Photo of the mixed relay in the Seine river from Reuters.