"At the daily meeting to review water quality that took place today (Friday) at 19:30 … decision has been made to cancel the swim leg of the triathlon familiarisation which was due to be held on August 3rd at 8:00," the organizers said in a statement quoted by the Mirror newspaper, specifying that the cause is the "heavy rain over the last two nights, which have been particularly intense upstream of the Paris."
On Wednesday, the women’s and the men’s triathlons were held in Paris, despite the cancellation of training familiarization sessions and the postponement of the men's event due to poor water quality.
A number of triathletes have expressed their dissatisfaction with the Paris Olympics, saying that the organizers did not consider the health of the athletes. Several athletes became ill during or after the competition on Wednesday. Canadian triathlete Tyler Mislawchuk became sick and threw up live right after crossing the finish line. French triathlete Cassandre Beaugrand, who won gold in the event, said that she "smelled and saw things that we shouldn't think about too much" during the race, adding that "the Seine has been dirty for a hundred years, so they can't say that the safety of athletes is a priority."
The Seine is said to be contaminated with hazardous bacteria. Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swam in the river that flows through the French capital ahead of the games to prove that the water was safe for competitions.