At least 57 people suffered from diarrhea and vomiting after swimming at the World Triathlon Championships stage in Sunderland (UK) last weekend, according to health authorities. The British health security agency (UKHSA) said this weekend that it was investigating to determine the causes of these symptoms, would send a questionnaire and request samples from those affected.
Analyzes carried out by the Environment Agency at Roker beach – where the water quality is usually very good – three days before the competition revealed the presence of Escherichia coli bacteria 39 times higher than the usual rate. “I’ve been feeling pretty bad since the race, but I guess that’s what happens when you’re swimming in shit,” Australian triathlete Jake Birthwistle said on Instagram, in a post accompanying the water tests. The event should have been “cancelled”, he said.
The competition was held in an area of the coastline at the center of a controversy over sewage discharges from water companies, a scourge in the UK. Local operator Northumbrian Water assured The Observer, the Sunday edition of The Guardian daily, that the discharges do not affect this beach as they are “intercepted” and discharged through an outfall at sea. discipline, also affirmed that the results of the analyzes carried out before the competition were within the standards, and on the other hand that those of the Environment Agency were only published after the competition and did not concern on the area behind the pier where the event took place.
Environment Agency officials told The Observer that the results of the samples taken on July 26 were not released until the 31st because they required laboratory analysis. A spokesperson for the agency pointed out that “temporary drops in water quality can be caused by several factors, including heavy rains.”
In Paris, a test swim in the Seine scheduled for this weekend was canceled due to pollution blamed on recent heavy rainfall. The French authorities ensure that they remain confident in view of the 2024 Olympic Games.
