Organizers made the difficult decision to cancel this week’s training sessions in the river and postpone the men’s race, originally scheduled for Tuesday, due to concerns over water quality following heavy rainstorms last week.
In an early morning announcement on Wednesday, World Triathlon and the Paris Games’ organizing committee confirmed that the women’s race would proceed as planned, followed by the rescheduled men’s event.
According to a statement released at 4:00 am (0200 GMT), “The latest water analyses, conducted at 3:20 am, indicate that the water quality meets the standards set by World Triathlon, allowing the triathlon competitions to take place as scheduled.”
While it rained overnight, the weather cleared by the time the athletes took their positions on a pontoon over the river at the iconic Alexandre III bridge, a landmark in the City of Light.
The race commenced with a challenging 1,500-meter swim in the Seine, with swimmers navigating two laps in the river, both with and against the current. Bermuda’s Flora Duffy, the gold medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, demonstrated her prowess once again by leading the pack after the first lap.
It was a thrilling start to the competition, with athletes eager to showcase their skills and determination.
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