Olympic Swimmer Falls Ill After Seine River Swim, Belgium Withdraws from Triathlon

The Belgium Olympics team has withdrawn from the mixed relay triathlon event at the Paris Games due to a health complication about one of the team athletes.

One of the key members of the triathlon team, Claire Michel, suddenly got sick after a swim in the Seine River last Wednesday. A river that has been subjected to numerous controversies regarding its water quality and safety.

In an official statement, the Belgian Olympic Committee announced, “The Belgian Hammers will not start in the Mixed Relay competition at the Paris Games. Michel, one of the athletes in the mixed relay team, unfortunately, has to withdraw from the competition due to illness.”

Although the Olympic team did not disclose the exact nature of Michel’s illness, Belgium’s newspaper De Standaard reported that the triathlete was hospitalized for an E. coli infection. E. coli, a bacteria that is related to severe intestinal problems can cause a lot of health complications among people.

There has been controversy over the circumstances of the Seine River before the Olympic event took place. On Sunday, Olympic organizers cancelled a scheduled practice swim for triathletes after testing revealed poor water quality.

According to a release from the organizers, “heavy rains” on Wednesday and Thursday had overwhelmed the city’s outdated sewer system, resulting in untreated sewage entering the Seine and increasing E. coli levels.

Despite a significant $1 billion investment by France to clean the Seine ahead of the Games, an effort marked by Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo’s symbolic swim in the river in July, the water has remained problematic. The Seine had been off-limits for swimming for over a century due to contamination concerns.

Michel and other Olympic triathletes swam in the Seine for the last time on Wednesday. The mixed relay triathlon planned for Monday will go on without Belgium’s team. However, the normal daily water quality tests shall be conducted awaiting the Monday event and the marathon swimming races that will take place on Thursday and Friday.

About these circumstances, the Belgian team said it would expect better performances in the future events of triathlons. “Belgian Triathlon hopes that lessons will be learned for future triathlon competitions,” the statement read. “We are thinking of training days that can be guaranteed, competition days and formats that are clear in advance, and circumstances that do not cause uncertainty among athletes, entourage, and fans.”