Belgium withdraws from mixed relay triathlon after athlete who swam in Seine falls ill

Paris: Belgium s Olympic committee announced Sunday that it would withdraw its team from the mixed relay triathlon at the Paris Olympics after one of...

Paris: Belgium's Olympic committee announced Sunday that it would withdraw its team from the mixed relay triathlon at the Paris Olympics after one of its competitors who swam in the Seine River fell ill.

Claire Michel, who competed in the women's triathlon Wednesday, "is unfortunately ill and will have to withdraw from the competition,” the Belgian Olympic and Interfederal Committee said in a statement. Paris 2024 organizers had no immediate statement.

The mixed relay triathlon is scheduled to take place Monday, with the swim portion of the competition slated for the Seine as well. The statement did not elaborate on Michel's illness but it comes after concerns over the river's water quality. Organizers had said that water quality tests done the day of the individual triathlon races showed "very good” bacteria levels.

Daily water quality tests measure levels of the fecal bacteria, including E. coli, in the Seine’s waters. World Triathlon’s water safety guidelines and a 2006 European Union directive assign qualitative values to a range of E. coli levels.

Under World Triathlon’s guidelines, E. coli levels up to 1,000 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters can be considered "good” and can allow competitions to go forward.