TRI HARDER
Paris 2024 Olympic triathlon event cancelled over fears of water quality in River Seine despite £1bn bid to clean it
It is not the only event to be canned because of the weather
OLYMPIC triathlon at the Paris 2024 Games has hit a major roadblock after a practice event was cancelled.
The first triathlon event is due to take place on July 30.
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However, concerns over the water quality of the river Seine has seen a pre-race practice event scrapped.
Organisers had scheduled a session in the river at 8am on Sunday morning to help athletes familiarise themselves with the swimming leg of the event.
But a meeting involving representatives of World Triathlon and city and regional authorities decided to scrap the practice event following the results of water quality tests carried out on Saturday.
A statement said: "The tests carried out in the Seine yesterday revealed water quality levels that in the view of the international federation, World Triathlon, did not provide sufficient guarantees to allow the event to be held.
"This is due to rain that has fallen on Paris on 26 and 27 July.
"Given the weather forecast for the next 48 hours, Paris 2024 and World Triathlon are confident that water quality will return to below limits before the start for of the triathlon competitions."
Swimming in the river has been banned for over a century due to poor water quality.
A staggering $1.5billion (£1.2bn) has been invested since 2015 to prepare the Seine for these Olympics and ensure water quality was good enough to stage events including the swimming leg of the triathlon and marathon swimming event.
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A giant installation built under Austerlitz station is technically redirecting pollution away from the river and to a processing plant.
But tests carried out in early June determined there were still unsafe levels of E.coli bacteria, though this was followed by more recent improvements.
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Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo took a dip in the river two weeks before the start of the Olympics in a bid to show the Seine was clean enough to host swimming competitions.
President Emmanuel Macron himself was so confident the plan would work that he has pledged to don his Speedos to go swimming, but has yet to do so.
While the swimming familiarisation event has been canned, the running and biking practice sessions will go ahead as planned.
The men's triathlon begins on Tuesday morning, with the women's event coming the day after.
What is the triathlon?
TEAM GB has had HUGE success in the triathlon at the Olympics.
Ahead of Paris 2024, they have won eight medals in the event since its debut in 2000.
But what are the disciplines and distances in the popular Olympic sport?
SWIM: The Olympic race begins with a 1500 metre swim. This takes place in open water, with competitors wearing swimming caps and goggles. Swimmers can use any stroke except backstroke, but at Olympic level all opt for freestyle.
CYCLE: Next comes the 40km bike ride. Before they head out on their bikes, the athletes must remove their goggles and caps in the transition zone. If they fail to do this in the zone then they will receive a penalty. Wetsuits have been developed so they do not need to be removed after the swim but can be worn for the cycle and run. Shoes are already attached to the bike pedals to save time. Cycling helmets must be worn and securely fastened before the competitor touches the bike. The racer then runs with their bike to exit the transition zone. If they mount their bike before leaving the area they can be penalised or even disqualified.
RUN: After the bike ride the competitor must correctly leave their bike in the transition zone before heading out on the 10km run. They must dismount before entering the area. Once in the zone they must remove their helmet and place it in the correct box, while also putting on their running shoes before leaving the area. The 10km race is the last part of the three-part race with the first over the line being the winner.
PENALTY BOX: Athletes can pick up penalties if they break the rules on the course. This can include deliberately impeding another competitor or cycling too close. During the relay, penalties can be handed out for faulty changeovers. Athletes serve their penalty by entering the penalty box for the required time. They must do this before finishing the race.
Distances in the Olympic mixed relay event are slightly shorter. Each of the four teammates must swim 300 metres, cycle for 6.8km, and run 2km.
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Spanish triathlete Alberto Gonzalez was hopeful things would improve in time.
He said: "Hopefully we get to swim, bike and run because I don’t swim this much to just run and bike."
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Triathlon is not the only event to have been affected by the rain.
The Street Skateboarding event had to be cancelled yesterday as a result of the wet conditions making the surface area too slippery.
What's happening today at The Games?
WHAT TO WATCH TODAY...
THE PARIS 2024 Olympics started with a stunning Opening Ceremony - and now the Games really do begin.
SunSport brings you all the action taking place in the French capital on a thrilling first full day.
Adam Peaty will be the headline act for Team GB as he goes for gold in the final of the 100m breaststroke (8.50pm).
A lot of eyes will also be on LeBron James, Stephen Curry and the Team USA men's basketball team, who start their campaign against Nikola Jokic and Serbia (11.15am ET / 4.15pm BST).
There are not expected to be too many other British medal tilts on Sunday, but the women's gymnastics team (all day) are going through qualification as are the rowing teams (from 8am).
The both the men's (vs South Africa, 7.15pm) and women's hockey teams (vs Spain 12.15pm) are both in action.
American swimming stars Carson Foster and Tori Huske are among a multitude of stars joining Adam Peaty in the pool from around 7pm BST / 2pm ET.
Click here for all the events taking place at Paris 2024 today.
Follow all the action as it unfolds with our Paris 2024 Olympics LIVE blog.
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