Olympics officials' dip in the Seine just part of the razamatazz

In what has now become a hallowed tradition, a bunch of Olympics officials went for a dip in the River Seine in Paris.

The Seine has a horrible reputation as a polluted waterway, but Olympics officials insist that much has been done to clean it up for the swimming events in the upcoming Olympics. And the fact that the officials themselves are willing to brave it is supposed to give both competitors and viewers some confidence that it is in fact safe and is not going to lead to mass illnesses. I remember the same thing happening in London and Rio.

However, I just can't imagine those competitors watching this PR campaign and nervously nodding to each other, saying, "Look, it MUST be safe!" It has just become another part of the Olympic razzamatazz, along with parading the Olympic Flame through obscure part of the world, and inventing increasingly bizarre methods of lighting the cauldron.

UPDATE

The triathlon event at Paris has been postponed again due to excessive levels of pollution, razzamatazz notwithstanding. Officials blame the rain and the sun. Personally, I blame Paris and someone's decision to hold a sporting event in a polluted watercourse.

The triathlon did eventually go ahead when organizers saw a brief window of opportunity while the E.coli count was not too horrendous. I hope they held their noses, though.