Just one day after the Seine was reopened to swimmers for the first time in over a century, access has been shut down again.
Predictably, the issue was one of water quality and, by extension, safety. About 3,000 nervous-looking swimmers took to the water on Saturday, July 5th, using three designated public areas and their adjacent changing rooms and showers, and even beach-style furniture.
Promises to reopen the river go back to 1988, but to date, progress on removing faecal bacteria from the water seems unachievable. Olympic organisers were confident that the river would be clean in time for the competition, but to no avail. When the Seine was scheduled for use in competitive triathlon swimming in 2024, the various events had to be postponed due to unsafe pollution levels.
Now, despite the promise of amateur swimming opportunities running until the end of August 2025, rainfall and the risk of sewage contamination have led authorities to declare the river temporarily unsafe. More than a century on from the initial ban, swimming in the Seine looks no likelier than before.
