Men's triathlon race postponed to Wednesday due to Seine pollution levels

The men's triathlon at the Paris Olympics will not go ahead as planned on Tuesday as pollution levels in the Seine remain too high, World Triathlon said in a statement, dealing a blow to organizers and leaving athletes facing more uncertainty.

The race was postponed until Wednesday at 10:45 AM local time (0845 GMT), immediately after the women's event, which is scheduled for 8 AM that day.

Organizers had previously said they were confident water quality would improve in time for the race after heavy rains last Friday and Saturday dirtied the river.

"Despite the improvement of water quality levels over the last hours, the readings at some points of the swim course are still above the acceptable limits," they said early on Tuesday.

Should levels of bacteria remain too high by Wednesday morning both the men's and women's races are likely to be postponed to Friday, the contingency day reserved for the events.

If by Friday the water quality is still not good enough, the swim leg will be scrapped and athletes will compete in a duathlon instead. For the mixed triathlon relay event on Aug. 5, the contingency day is Aug. 6.

Adding to the risk of another postponement, France's state weather service has forecast a risk of thunderstorms on Tuesday evening and overnight.


Reuters