10 ms·

> The seasonal opening of the Seine for swimming is seen as a key legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympics, when open-water swimmers and triathletes competed in its wa

> The seasonal opening of the Seine for swimming is seen as a key legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympics, when open-water swimmers and triathletes competed in its waters which were specially cleaned for the event. Meanwhile... > The Olympic legacy of the Seine has taken another hit, with a second athlete taken to hospital after competing in the murky waters. https://www.thetimes.com/sport/olympics/article/second-olympian-in-hospital-after-swimming-in-seine-m07g5mmx5 https://www.thetimes.com/sport/olympics/article/second-olymp...

yread 1y ago
It seems neither of them were clearly linked to the river? The articles on this guy were kinda clickbaity saying he "was rushed to the hospital" when he tweeted that he rushed to the hospital because of the stomach bug
- thaumasiotes 1y ago
  Since the reason for not swimming in the Seine was sewage, a "stomach bug" is exactly the problem you'd expect to develop after swimming in it. To rule the water out, you'd need evidence that, say, the guy ate at a restaurant with several other people who didn't go swimming, and they got sick too.
  - mym1990 1y ago
    Why not just compare the incidence of sickness at the swimming event vs other triathlon swimming events and see if 2(or whatever the number of competitors affected was) is abnormal and work from there?
    - pdabbadabba 1y ago
      Yep. That has, in fact, been done and seems to show an elevated risk of GI illness in Olympians who swam in the Seine compared to previous Olympics. https://www.medpagetoday.com/special-reports/exclusives/111605 https://www.medpagetoday.com/special-reports/exclusives/1116...
    - thaumasiotes 1y ago
      That would be an approach to the question of "is the Seine dirtier than other triathlon events?", but it wouldn't address the question of "how did this guy get sick?"
  - bluGill 1y ago
    i cannot find current data, but france had more food poinoning case than the us about 20 years ago (that is not per capita, that is total) thus it something they ate is not unlikely
layer8 1y ago
Meanwhile: > Paris officials say they have taken several measures to ensure swimmers can safely enjoy the long-anticipated reopening, including daily water pollution testing and implementing a swim test for bathers. The water quality is "exceptional", said Marc Guillaume, the prefect for the Ile-de-France region that includes Paris. "We are monitoring two bacteria, E. coli and enterococci, and for one we are ten times below the thresholds and for the other more than 25 times below," he said.
- _zoltan_ 1y ago
  let him swim in it. that's the real test. if the official claims it's exceptional then surely it's not a problem for him.
  - padenot 1y ago
    He did last year, alongside mayor Hidalgo and others, such as Tony Estanguet, who is a former athlete and was overseeing the olympics and the minister for sports. Article in French: https://www.franceinfo.fr/les-jeux-olympiques/paris-2024/baignade-d-anne-hidalgo-dans-la-seine-pourquoi-plonger-ou-non-avant-les-jo-de-paris-est-devenu-un-enjeu-politique_6667758.html https://www.franceinfo.fr/les-jeux-olympiques/paris-2024/bai...
    - ameliaquining 1y ago
      Amusingly, President Macron also said that he was going to swim in it to prove it was safe, but ultimately didn't. According to Wikipedia, "the primary reason cited was the concurrent French general election, but reports also circulated that protestors had planned a mass defecation event to coincide with the swim."

yread 1y ago

It seems neither of them were clearly linked to the river? The articles on this guy were kinda clickbaity saying he "was rushed to the hospital" when he tweeted that he rushed to the hospital because of the stomach bug

thaumasiotes 1y ago
Since the reason for not swimming in the Seine was sewage, a "stomach bug" is exactly the problem you'd expect to develop after swimming in it. To rule the water out, you'd need evidence that, say, the guy ate at a restaurant with several other people who didn't go swimming, and they got sick too.
- mym1990 1y ago
  Why not just compare the incidence of sickness at the swimming event vs other triathlon swimming events and see if 2(or whatever the number of competitors affected was) is abnormal and work from there?
  - pdabbadabba 1y ago
    Yep. That has, in fact, been done and seems to show an elevated risk of GI illness in Olympians who swam in the Seine compared to previous Olympics. https://www.medpagetoday.com/special-reports/exclusives/111605 https://www.medpagetoday.com/special-reports/exclusives/1116...
  - thaumasiotes 1y ago
    That would be an approach to the question of "is the Seine dirtier than other triathlon events?", but it wouldn't address the question of "how did this guy get sick?"
- bluGill 1y ago
  i cannot find current data, but france had more food poinoning case than the us about 20 years ago (that is not per capita, that is total) thus it something they ate is not unlikely

layer8 1y ago

Meanwhile: > Paris officials say they have taken several measures to ensure swimmers can safely enjoy the long-anticipated reopening, including daily water pollution testing and implementing a swim test for bathers. The water quality is "exceptional", said Marc Guillaume, the prefect for the Ile-de-France region that includes Paris. "We are monitoring two bacteria, E. coli and enterococci, and for one we are ten times below the thresholds and for the other more than 25 times below," he said.

_zoltan_ 1y ago
let him swim in it. that's the real test. if the official claims it's exceptional then surely it's not a problem for him.
- padenot 1y ago
  He did last year, alongside mayor Hidalgo and others, such as Tony Estanguet, who is a former athlete and was overseeing the olympics and the minister for sports. Article in French: https://www.franceinfo.fr/les-jeux-olympiques/paris-2024/baignade-d-anne-hidalgo-dans-la-seine-pourquoi-plonger-ou-non-avant-les-jo-de-paris-est-devenu-un-enjeu-politique_6667758.html https://www.franceinfo.fr/les-jeux-olympiques/paris-2024/bai...
  - ameliaquining 1y ago
    Amusingly, President Macron also said that he was going to swim in it to prove it was safe, but ultimately didn't. According to Wikipedia, "the primary reason cited was the concurrent French general election, but reports also circulated that protestors had planned a mass defecation event to coincide with the swim."