After water quality concerns canceled test runs, Olympic triathletes plunge into the Seine for relay

Associated Press

PARIS (AP) — Olympic triathletes plunged into the Seine River when the mixed relay event got underway after organizers said the bacteria levels in the long-polluted Paris waterway were at acceptable levels. Organizers on Sunday night made the decision to hold the event Monday morning with swimming legs in the Seine. The plan to hold the swimming portion of the triathlons and the marathon swimming events in the Seine was an ambitious one. Swimming in the river has, with some exceptions, been off-limits since 1923 because it has been too toxic.