After days of delays and uncertainty over water quality concerns in the Seine River, the women’s and men’s Olympic triathlon races will go forward.

After days of water-quality concerns caused by heavy rains last week put the swimming portion of the Olympic triathlons in doubt, the women dove into the Seine River on Wednesday under gray skies that lingered following an early-morning drizzle, followed by the men a few hours later.

The athletes began near the Pont Alexandre III, a bridge that spans the famed Paris waterway. The steady rain tapered off just as the athletes splashed into the water. Some dunked their swim goggles in the Seine before putting them on and heading into the river with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

The decision to go ahead with the swim for the triathlon competitions was a big deal for the city, Olympics organizers and the athletes. Officials undertook an ambitious plan, including 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 billion) in infrastructure improvements, to clean up the long-polluted Seine and have been steadfast in their insistence that the swimming portion of the triathlon and the marathon swimming events next week could safely be held in the river.

  • @anywho
    15•4 months ago

    This is a specific kind of mass gaslighting and sunk cost fallacy: “Think of all the money we spent on cleaning, don’t you believe it’s clean?” /s

    • Synapse
      20•4 months ago

      I don’t know if we can still call the river clean. But I disagree that it’s sunk cost fallacy.

      This river has been polluted for centuries and it’s no doubt that it requires considerable efforts and resources to make it safe to swim in on a regular basis.

      But the effort is not in vein! And the important attention the Olympics brought on the subject of water quality to the public is very important too! More people realize they deserve clean rivers and we should do what it takes to get it !

    • EleventhHour
      21•4 months ago

      So is my ass. I still don’t think Olympians should be swimming in my toilet, though.

        • EleventhHour
          5•4 months ago

          i live in florida. i doubt my town treats its sewage.

          still, its prolly cleaner than the Ganges

  • @solrize
    6•4 months ago

    The actual Olympic swimmers who have competitions coming up, with whatever bugs they pick up in that river? That is crazy.

  • Media Bias Fact CheckerB
    -2•4 months ago
    Associated Press Media Bias Fact Check Credibility: [High] (Click to view Full Report)

    Associated Press is rated with High Creditability by Media Bias Fact Check.

    Bias: Left-Center
    Factual Reporting: High
    Country: United States of America
    Full Report: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/associated-press/

    Check the bias and credibility of this article on Ground.News

    Thanks to Media Bias Fact Check for their access to the API.
    Please consider supporting them by donating.

    Footer

    Media Bias Fact Check is a fact-checking website that rates the bias and credibility of news sources. They are known for their comprehensive and detailed reports.

    Beep boop. This action was performed automatically. If you dont like me then please block me.💔
    If you have any questions or comments about me, you can make a post to LW Support lemmy community.