Canadian triathletes unbothered by uncertainty caused by water quality in Seine River

PARIS — Despite uncertainty around the safety of competing in the Seine River, Canadian athletes were unfazed when it came time to compete.

For months, France had faced questions as to whether the Seine River would be safe for athletes to compete in, and in return spent loads of money to clean the polluted water leading up to the Paris Olympics.

The men's triathlon was initially scheduled for Tuesday morning before it was rescheduled due to water tests that "revealed water quality levels that did not provide sufficient guarantees to allow the event to be held."

The event was moved to Wednesday to follow up the women's triathlon, but uncertainty remained, with the water having to meet the testing requirements to hold the competitions. Friday was set as a contingency date, but in the end, there was no need for that.

"That's just noise, right?" said Canadian Tyler Mislawchuk, who finished ninth in the men's individual triathlon on Wednesday. "As an athlete, you were taught from a young age that you focus on what you can control.

"I sure can't control whatever happens with the water or what day the race is, but I control the effort and my mindset so ... all I did was focus on myself. A day later, I just told myself it's an extra day to rest."

For Charles Paquet of Port-Cartier, Que., who finished 13th in the men's event, the most difficult part was the early wake-up call that came before the news of the delay.

"To be honest, the worst part was waking up at (4 a.m.) yesterday," he said. "But other than that, (I) try to not think about it.

"As an athlete, you're used to having last-minute changes. Sometimes we race outdoors and sometimes there's storms, … we're just used to it."

Emy Legault of L’Île Perrot, Que., Canada's lone representative in the women's competition, said it didn't affect her mental preparation.

"In general as an athlete, you just have to roll with the punches," said Legault, who finished 35th. "So at this point, we just do what we're told, so when they go, we go."

The women's event kicked things off in Seine River in what started out as a rainy Wednesday morning. As the day wore on, however, it went from clouds and rain to sunshine coupled with heat and humidity.

"It was less dangerous on the bike, but for sure it was a lot more difficult because I really felt the heat on the run, I was starting to get hot," Paquet said.

None of it took away from the experience for Paquet, who made his Olympic debut.

"For me, it's a really special Olympics," he said. "It's my first Olympics and racing here in Paris, just by the Eiffel Tower … Water aside, I think it's a great place and it's a memorable race for me."

Mislawchuk, who competed in his third Olympics and earned his highest placing at a Games, said he felt proud of his performance. The 29-year-old from Winnipeg was fifth with just a couple of kilometres to go in the event.

"I went for it," he said. "I didn't care if I was gonna be fourth or 55th, I wanted a medal. And as I say a lot, I race until the wheels came off and if one kid back home or around Canada takes some inspiration from that ... Of course I wanted more but, I threw up 10 times after the race.

"That's all I had. Proud of how I fought out there all the way to the end."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2024.

Abdulhamid Ibrahim, The Canadian Press