Paris Olympics 2024: Paris mayor takes a dip in Seine river to assure the quality post-cleaning
On Wednesday, however, the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo, delivered on her pledge and was among the first to arrive.
For decades, Paris mayors have dreamed and promised that the Seine will be clean enough to swim in and host triathlons and other events. For the past century, and until a few days ago, the answer appeared to be no.
When did the mayor swim in the river?
On Wednesday, the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo took a dip in the river | Image: X
On Wednesday, however, the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo, delivered on her pledge and was among the first to arrive.
To cheers and clapping, she led a group of approximately 100 officials, athletes, and locals into the river, donning a swimsuit and taking a bath after a series of tests revealed it was now safe.
Also read: Paris Olympics 2024: 6 things Paris is doing uniquely for this year's game
¡°It¡¯s a dream day ¡ and the sun is out,¡± Hidalgo stated after crawling 100 metres downstream in water estimated at 20¡ãC (68¡ãF). ¡°It¡¯s sweet and wonderful and the result of a lot of work. I remember at the very beginning in 2015 when we began our campaign for the Games, the international triathlon federation said why not a triathlon in the Seine? Will athletes be able to swim in the Seine? Today we can say they can.¡±
Why was the river cleaned ahead of the Olympics?
Along with the mayor approximately 100 other officials joined for a swim in the river | Image: X
Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris 2024 organizing committee, commended city hall and French authorities on making the river safe for swimming. "Today we have confirmation that the Seine is swimmable and that the triathlon and marathon swimming competitions can take place in it," he informed us.
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¡°As organisers, we¡¯re very happy to be able to offer athletes the best conditions ¡ but over and above that what is at play is using the Games to speed up the transformation of the city and make it possible to swim in the Seine.¡±
He noted that in the event of severe rain, which could cause an increase in water contamination, contingency measures had been developed to postpone races for "a few days".
When was swimming in the Seine prohibited?
Swimming in the Seine, which divides Paris, has been prohibited since 1923 due to health concerns. In 1990, Paris' then-mayor, Jacques Chirac, promised to make it clean enough to swim in, but he failed. Check the viral video here.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo went swimming in the city¡¯s River Seine on Wednesday morning, July 17, in a bid to prove the water is clean enough to host outdoor swimming events at the #Olympics.
¡ª Katie Couric (@katiecouric) July 17, 2024
?: Anne Hidalgo via Storyful ?: Getty Images pic.twitter.com/op9RE1501b
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