Olympic test event in Seine cancelled after heavy rain

PARIS: An open water swimming test event scheduled for next week in the Seine has been cancelled due to heavy rainfall, the French capital's authorities said on Friday (Jun 7).

During this year's Olympic Games, the opening ceremony as well as triathlon and open water competitions will take place in the river.

Heavy rainfall can lead to increased pollution in the Seine with officials warning it could overwhelm Paris' sewerage system.

The water level in the Seine before Monday's now-scrapped event is at 349 cubic square metres, with the level desired for this summer's events at 100 cubic square metres.

A rehearsal for the opening ceremony in May was postponed until Jun 17, five weeks before the start of the Games on Jul 26.

Although a new water treatment plant was inaugurated upstream of Paris at the end of April, another major Olympics-related water infrastructure project has yet to enter service.

A giant new underground stormwater facility close to the Austerlitz train station in eastern Paris, which will stock water to prevent discharges into the river, is scheduled to come on stream in early June.

Cleaning up the river Seine is seen as one of the key legacy achievements of the Games, with mayor Anne Hidalgo promising three public bathing spots for locals next year.

Around €1.4 billion (US$1.5 billion) has been spent by French authorities upgrading sewage treatment and stormwater facilities around Paris to reduce the amount of untreated faecal matter flowing into the river and its main tributary, the Marne.