In a bizarre turn of events, activists have declared their intention to defecate in the already contaminated Seine River just before the Paris Olympics kick off next month. It seems the message of environmentalism hasn’t quite sunk in for these self-proclaimed champions of the cause.
With the Seine River rife with harmful bacteria, athletes set to compete in open-water events during the Olympics, like the triathlon, are facing a risky situation plunging into its murky waters. The call to drop trou and pollute the river stemmed from a supposed joke that spiraled into a full-blown plan with a dedicated website for participants to coordinate their waste-dumping schedules.
PARIS POOP PROTEST
French President Emmanuel Macron and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo to swim in Seine river today… Parisians poop in the river to protest City spending over $1 Billion to make the river swimable before the Olympics… pic.twitter.com/QKoWNN3yQz— Jon Dogar-Marinesco (@dogar_marinesco) June 24, 2024
While the protest may come off as juvenile, it points a finger at the serious health risks athletes will encounter by swimming in such contaminated conditions. Despite efforts by the French government to clean up the river with a hefty $1.5 billion investment, the water quality remains far from ideal.
The Surfrider Foundation’s findings paint a grim picture, showing alarmingly high levels of E. coli and enterococci in the Seine River, posing a direct threat to the well-being of athletes gearing up for the Olympic water sports. Despite promises of public bathing areas reopening after nearly a century, the reality of the river’s pollution levels can’t be ignored.
Even top French officials, including President Macron and Paris Mayor Hidalgo, were scheduled for a swim in the supposedly cleaner waters but conveniently postponed their dip. The ongoing saga of promises to clean up the Seine echoes past failed commitments, leaving a trail of empty gestures and unmet targets.
With the clock ticking down to the Olympics, the question remains whether the Seine can be salvaged in time for the sporting events to proceed as planned. The possibility of altering the triathlon format looms as a potential last-minute solution, casting a shadow over the dedicated athletes who have trained rigorously for the original competition setup.