- The men’s triathlon was supposed to take place on Tuesday but was moved early
- Over £1billion was spent trying to improve the river quality before the Games
- E. coli levels beyond 900 colony-forming units per 100ml are considered unsafe
An Olympic Games triathlete has revealed he has gone to extreme measures to try and help himself adapt for the Games.
A lot of attention around the competition has been on the River Seine in France, with the opening ceremony taking place on the river and there being heavy concerns over the cleanliness of the water.
On Tuesday, the men’s triathlon was postponed due to concerns, despite a mammoth cleaning effort taking place to try and get it in better condition for the Games.
Swimming training for the triathletes was canceled on Sunday and Monday and the decision has been taken to move the men’s race from 8am local time Tuesday to Wednesday at 10:45am. The women’s race will remain as scheduled – Wednesday at 8am.
Seth Rider, meanwhile, who competes for the American team, has bizarrely revealed the extreme lengths he has gone to in order to try and prepare himself for the conditions he may face in competition.
An Olympic triathlete has revealed his bizarre training method used to help with E. coli concerns in the River Seine
Seth Rider (right) of Team USA has said he has stopped washing his hands after going to the toilet to try and help himself adapt
The men’s triathlon at the Olympics was postponed on Tuesday morning because of the Seine’s water quality
‘We know there’s going to be some E. coli exposure,’ he said. ‘I just try to increase my E. coli threshold by exposing myself to a bit of E. coli in your day-to-day life.
‘Just little things throughout your day, like not washing your hands after you go to the bathroom and stuff like this.’
Rider isn’t among the favourites backed for a medal in Paris, with Team GB’s Alex Yee backed to earn individual gold for the first time on the back of his silver in Tokyo at the 2020 Games.
A statement from World Triathlon, meanwhile, said Friday remains a contingency day if one or both of the races are unable to go ahead.
It read: ‘Tests carried out in the Seine today revealed water quality did not provide sufficient guarantees to allow the event to be held. Despite the improvement in the water quality levels, the readings at some points of the swim course are still above the acceptable limits.’
Exacerbating the issue are weather forecasts that call for rain showers and even some storms between Tuesday night and Thursday. Rain typically raises bacteria levels in the Seine, where June tests revealed unsafe levels of E. coli – a potential sign of fecal matter and disease-carrying germs.
According to World Triathlon Federation standards, E. coli levels beyond 900 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters are considered unsafe.
Organisers also had the option to drop the swimming and make the event a duathlon.
Efforts to clean the water included the creation of a giant basin to capture rainwater while preventing wastewater from finding its way into the river. Furthermore, sewer infrastructure was renovated and wastewater treatment plants were also upgraded.
However, organisers knew heavy rain in the days before a competition could still cause the levels of the harmful bacteria E. Coli to rise.
Training sessions for the Olympic triathlon event in Paris have been cancelled in recent days
There was hope the effects of the deluge that marred Friday’s opening ceremony would have passed in time but that has not been the case.
‘There are unfortunate meteorological events outside of our control,’ said Aurélie Merle, the Paris 2024 director of sports.
‘But otherwise the project is still very strong. When we see the impact on the quality and the legacy that we can leave also to the Parisians, we all feel extremely proud of what we’ve done so far.’
Swimming in the Seine, which dissects the city, has been banned since 1923.
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