Men's Olympic triathlon postponed due to Seine water quality - ESPN

PARIS — The men's Olympic triathlon planned for Tuesday has been postponed over concerns about water quality in Paris' Seine River, where the swimming portion of the race was supposed to take place.

Organizers said they will try to hold the men's triathlon Wednesday instead. The women's competition is also scheduled for Wednesday, but both are subject to water tests. Friday is also planned as a backup date.

But Meteo-France, the French weather service, was forecasting storms Tuesday night, light rain Wednesday afternoon and storms Thursday, which could complicate rescheduling the events.

Heavy rains generally cause levels of E. coli and other bacteria in the Seine to rise. Paris experienced a downpour during the Olympic opening ceremony Friday, with rain continuing into Saturday. The swimming portion of training events meant to let the triathletes familiarize themselves with the course was canceled on both Sunday and Monday because of concerns over water quality.

The decision to postpone the men's triathlon followed a meeting early Tuesday morning that included the sport's governing body, World Triathlon, its medical team and city officials.

«Despite the improvement on the water quality levels in the last hours, the readings at some points of the swim course are still above the acceptable limits,» organizers said in a statement announcing the postponement, stressing that their «priority is the health of the athletes.»

The men's event is now scheduled to start at 10:45 a.m., which might make heat more of a factor. Wednesday's high temperature is forecast to be 95 F (35 C), and the event might be finishing at the hottest part of the day. The women's race is set to go forward at 8 a.m. Wednesday as originally planned.

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