Paris Olympics: Seine fit for swimming most of past 12 days, says official
The Hindu
Paris prepares Seine River for Olympic Games with clean water, despite pollution concerns from recent heavy rainfall.
The Seine has been clean enough to swim for most of the past 12 days, Paris city hall said Friday, July 12, just weeks ahead of the Olympic Games.
The quality of the water met the required standard for "11 days or 10 days" of the past 12, city hall official Pierre Rabadan told broadcaster RFI.
Weather permitting, the river will be the star of the opening ceremony of the Games on July 26 and will then host the triathlon and the swimming marathon.
The Paris region has seen an unseasonally amount of rain over recent weeks, which has raised the Seine's pollution levels as untreated sewage is washed into the river.
"We hope the weather will get a little better, but we are not worried about the possibility of holding the competitions," Rabadan said. "They will take place."
He added, however, that there may have to be "modifications", without giving details.
Weather in Paris is forecast to be mostly dry over the final 14 days before the start of the Games.