Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

PARIS 2024 OLYMPICS

River Seine pollution cancels another Paris Olympics test event

Pollution levels in the Seine river on Saturday forced the cancellation of a test event for the Paris Olympics para-triathlon contest just two weeks after another test competition was called off for the same reason.

Published: 19 August 2023 15:31 CEST
River Seine
Boats sail past the Ile Saint-Louis on River Seine during a rehearsal of the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics in July 2023. Photo by Bertrand GUAY / AFP

“The laboratory sample had a slightly too high level” of the E. coli bacteria, reported Paris mayor’s sports assistant Pierre Rabadan.

This follows the cancellation a fortnight ago of a test open-water swim competition for the 2024 Games due to excessive pollution.

The para-triathlon test event was reduced to just cycling and running.

A mixed relay triathlon planned for Sunday could well suffer the same fate, with a decision expected overnight, the world triathlon secretary general Antonio Arimany said.

READ ALSO: Will people really be able to swim in Paris’ Seine river in 2024?

Test events went ahead in the French capital’s river without any issues earlier this week.

Scotland’s Beth Potter braved the waters of the Seine to win the women’s triathlon before England’s Alex Yee won the men’s test event on a course identical to the one set to be used for next year’s Olympic games.

As organisers investigated the source of Saturday’s elevated E. coli readings, Tony Estanguet, the head of the Paris 2024 organising committee, stressed there was no ‘Plan B’ for next year’s sporting contests.

READ ALSO: Tickets, fan zones and Airbnb: Your 5-minute guide to the 2024 Paris Olympics

“There is no solution to move the event, the triathlon and open water swimming will be held in the Seine next year,” he insisted.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

PARIS

Eiffel Tower to hike ticket prices by 20 percent from June

Paris city hall on Friday voted to increase the Eiffel Tower adult admission price by 20 percent from next month to help pay for urgent renovation work.

Published: 24 May 2024 21:04 CEST
Eiffel Tower to hike ticket prices by 20 percent from June

Visitors currently pay €29.40 ($31.90) for a ride by lift to the top of the Eiffel tower, a price tag that is set to rise to 35.30 euros on June 17.

The Paris city council also backed a recapitalisation for Eiffel Tower operator SETE, and lowered the annual fee it charges the operator for running one of the world’s most famous monuments.

Lower visitor numbers during the Covid pandemic combined with spiralling renovation costs have pushed SETE deep into deficit.

Staff at the Eiffel Tower went on strike earlier this year, protesting against what unions said was insufficient investment.

The Eiffel Tower booked a shortfall of around 120 million euros during the Covid pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

Unions argued that previous recapitalisation of 60 million euros was insufficient given the need for major maintenance work, including a fresh paint job.

The masterpiece by architect Gustave Eiffel has been repainted 19 times since it was built for the 1889 World Fair.

Eiffel recommended at the time that it should be painted every seven years to keep inevitable rust at bay.

But the 300-metre (985-feet) iron structure — 330 metres tall when the high-frequency antenna at the top is included — has not been given a full paint job since 2010.

Visitor numbers recovered to nearly six million last year, having dropped to 1.5 million in 2020 because of Covid restrictions.

SHOW COMMENTS