Belgium will no longer compete in the mixed relay triathlon at the Paris Olympics after one of its athletes who previously swam in the River Seine fell ill, the country's Olympic committee said.
Claire Michel “is unfortunately ill and will have to withdraw from the competition,” the Olympic Committee and the Interfederal Committee said in a statement.
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Belgium's Claire Michel is pictured during the women's individual triathlon at the Paris Olympics on July 31, 2024. (JASPER JACOBS/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images)
Michel competed in the women's triathlon on Wednesday after days of training postponements due to concerns about the water quality of the Seine River. She finished 38th.
Paris 2024 organisers said the triathlon would take place at 8 a.m. local time. Belgian authorities did not specify the type of illness Michel suffered, but concerns were raised about water quality in the days and weeks leading up to the start of triathlon competitions.
World Triathlon, the International Olympic Committee and Olympic organisers together with regional and meteorological authorities reviewed the water quality, and the results indicated that conditions had improved in recent hours and would be within the limits required by World Triathlon.
Claire Michel of Belgium is assisted by Lotte Miller of Norway after the women's individual triathlon competition at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo on July 27, 2021. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
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According to World Triathlon guidelines, E. coli levels of up to 1,000 colony-forming units per 100 millilitres can be considered “good” and may allow the competition to go ahead. Daily analyses of the water in the Seine have been carried out.
Belgian Olympic officials expressed their “hope that lessons will be learned for future triathlon competitions at the Olympic Games. We are thinking about the guarantee of training days, competition days and the competition format, which must be clarified in advance and ensure that there is no uncertainty for athletes, the environment and fans.”
Australia's Natalie Van Coevorden (15), Belgium's Claire Michel (5) and Kazakhstan's Ekaterina Shabalina (32) compete in the swimming leg of the women's individual triathlon competition at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris on July 31, 2024. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
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Concerns about water quality led to the cancellation of the swimming portion of two events. The mixed relay swimming events were also cancelled on Saturday and Sunday due to bacteria levels.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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