Paralympic triathlon events rescheduled due to concerns over water quality in the Seine
"Uncertain" weather conditions lead to change in schedule
Having learned from the Olympic experience of dealing with water quality issues in the Seine River in Paris, officials from the Paralympic Games and World Triathlon have changed the schedule for the Para triathlon events this weekend. Rather than split the racing over two days, all 11 medal events will take place on Sept. 1, according to a release from World Triathlon today.
The issue is “uncertain” weather conditions (read rain) “which could have an impact on the conditions of the Seine,” the release continued.
Athletes were able to take part in the swim familiarization today, and more swims are planned for tomorrow and Saturday. The “contingency days” for the races are Sept. 2 and 3.
REVISED PARIS 2024 PARA TRIATHLON SCHEDULE – Sept. 1, 2024:
08:15:00 Start PTWC1 Men
08:18:00 Start PTWC2 Men
08:20:00 Start PTWC1 Women
08:23:38 Start PTWC2 Women
09:25:00 Start PTS3 Men
09:30:00 Start PTS2 Men
09:35:00 Start PTS2 Women
12:00:00 Start PTVI1 Men
12:02:41 Start PTVI2/3 Men
12:05:00 Start PTVI1 Women
12:08:11 Start PTVI2/3 Women
12:20:00 Start PTS5 Men
12:25:00 Start PTS4 Men
12:35:00 Start PTS5 Women
12:40:00 Start PTS4 Women
14:40:00 Medal Ceremonies
Para triathlon organizers are no-doubt looking to be proactive around the timing of the races after the controversial postponement of the men’s triathlon by a day for the Olympic Games in Paris. Water quality and the current were both an issue for the triathlon races in Paris.
The Paris Olympic and Paralympic organizers, along with French politicians, invested heavily in the Seine cleanup both in terms of political capital and hard cash. Millions of Euros were invested on five different projects designed to increase the capacity of the sewage network that would reduce amount of pollution going into the river and make the water safe for swimming. There was also a new reservoir constructed to store and treat water from the river, and millions of Euros are being spent on connecting homes to the new sewage networks.
One of the goals of the Games was to “give the Seine back to Parisiens,” Aurelie Merle, the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics Executive Director Sport Competitions, said.
The problem is that despite the investments in the Seine cleanup, water quality drops after rain storms as the drain and sewage systems can’t handle the extra water.
After the Olympic Games, World Triathlon released the data on the water quality conditions of the Seine for the triathlon events. While the water quality was above acceptable North American limits, it was well within the standards set by World Triathlon.
After the individual races in Paris, two athletes were too sick to compete in the mixed relay, but medical officials weren’t able to definitively attribute the illnesses to having swum in the Seine, especially after it was learned that Belgium’s Claire Michel had a virus, not an E. coli infection.
Belgian triathlete who had to pull out of mixed relay had a virus, not E. coli infection
Hopefully the Para triathletes will have the opportunity to swim – at last year’s Paris Test Event the Para events were switched to a duathlon due to poor water quality.
