World Aquatics Championships: E. coli bacteria to blame for postponed Sentosa open water race

SINGAPORE: E. coli bacteria levels that exceeded acceptable standards were to blame for the postponement of the World Aquatics Championships women's open water 10km race at Sentosa, said World Aquatics executive director Brent Nowicki on Tuesday (Jul 15).

Speaking to reporters at Parkroyal Collection Marina Bay on Tuesday afternoon, Mr Nowicki said that the source of this has yet to be ascertained.

Water tests were conducted on Sunday, with the results coming back late on Monday evening.

"Those tests showed exceeding levels of E. coli ... We don't know why that is the case because testing has been very sound and solid along the way," he said.

"I'm speculating, but it appears to be a single, isolated incident that happened somewhere on Saturday or Sunday that caused the spike to happen prior to that test taking place."

E. coli is a bacteria normally found in the intestines of people and animals, and may be introduced when cross-contamination occurs during the production process. While most species are harmless, some types may cause diarrhoea, stomach pain, cramps and fever.

Mr Nowicki said that further tests on the water were taken early Tuesday morning, and races will proceed on Wednesday should preliminary results be acceptable.

"In our schedule, there are contingencies that are built in that take into account that something may happen along the way. This is just one of those things that could have happened, that was a risk we had to take," he added.

"We're prepared to accept that risk and continue to push on with the event, testing the water, making sure it meets our standards and we're confident that the water quality will come back to the acceptable levels (and) the competition will continue."

Hours before the event was due