Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo made waves today by swimming in the Seine River alongside Paris 2024 Olympics chief Tony Estanguet – proving the once-polluted waterway is ready for athletes to dive into during next month's Games!
\"It's cool but not cold at all. We didn't want to get out,\" Hidalgo laughed after their splashy publicity stunt. The dip marks a major milestone after France invested €1.4 billion since 2016 to clean the Seine, turbocharged by Olympic preparations.
Breaking a 100-year bathing ban, the river will host marathon swimming and triathlon events starting July 26. Even better? Parisians and visitors can legally swim here starting summer 2025!
\"When we clean the Seine, we're not just preparing for the Olympics – we're protecting rivers for future generations,\" Hidalgo emphasized. The aquatic glow-up comes just in time for the Games' unprecedented opening ceremony… on the Seine itself!
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Hidalgo, Estanguet swim in Seine to prove river clean enough for Games
cgtn.com