Today's Article

2Triathlon swimming training sessions canceled two days 3in a row at the Paris Olympics 4on account of the poor 5water quality levels of the River Seine after the 6heavy rain that 7drenched Friday's opening ceremony. 

The 8gamble to make the Seine 9swimmable for the Olympics was always a big one with more than $1.5 billion spent trying to clean a river in which swimming had been illegal for more than a century. 

City Mayor Anne Hidalgo even went for a 10dip earlier this month to show the world what had been achieved. I decided to do the same and see it for myself. 

"It's actually really not a smelly as I thought it would be and feels, not quite clean, but certainly swimmable."

The mayor later told me that cleaning The Seine was about much more than just the Olympics. 

"Clean The Seine is for our generation and next generation live with the nature." 

As for the Games, planners were 11counting on dry weather to help, but after the weekend rain, it's a race against time with the men's triathlon scheduled for Tuesday and the women's for Wednesday.

"Not a problem," said the 12deputy mayor for sports, when I spoke to him earlier this month. 

"We don't work on the 13plan B because we have 14contingency days, so we are able to move the competition for several days. So we will be able to make the competition in the river. Don't worry about it." 

But in an interview with CNN's Amanda Davies, the head of World Triathlon sounded slightly more 15ominous. 

"In the worst scenario, at the very end, if it's needed, this is in our rules and regulations, we will 16convert it into a triathlon that is run, cycling and run again."