Polluted Water Keeps Delaying Olympics

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Water sports scheduled to be set in the River Seine, which flows through Paris, have been delayed for the second day in a row. According to Reuters, “Paris Olympics organizers canceled the triathlon swimming training session for the second day in a row on Monday, with 24 hours to go until the men’s race, after heavy rain affected water quality levels in the Seine.” It is not clear what will happen to the race if the water remains dangerous to swim in. And other events that involve the use of the river could also be put off. At some point, there will not be enough days left for the competitions to go on at all.

Heat Problems –122 Degrees In One City

As of the point of the delay announcement, Olympic officials say the water will be clean enough in the next few days to hold the events. Rain that has washed pollutants will have ended. Technologies created to keep the water clean will work well. Maybe. The water in Los Angeles may have an even worse problem.

Sponsorship Costs

It is hard to estimate what it will cost the Olympics and the media covering it will lose without some water races. NBC Universal is televising most of the events for viewers in the US. The advertising revenue from the network is expected to be about $1.2 billion.

The Paris Olympics and future ones face complex challenges. Paris is supposed to have a temperate climate. July and August temperatures are usually in the 60s and 70s during the day. That is not true any longer. The mercury rose above 108 degrees F on June 27, 2019. Sweltering temperatures may appear in many places around the world during summer. Even some places in the US are wildly hot.