“The greater the obstacle, the more the glory in overcoming it,” said the French playwright and poet Molière. And that is exactly what authorities and organizers at the Paris Olympics are going through at the moment. As Cassandre Beaugrand proudly showed off her triathlon gold medal drenched in the waters of the Seine, it was, in a manner, a victory for the authorities too.

With the Olympics ongoing, the river was plagued with controversies regarding the quality of its water. Reflecting back on the challenges faced and the triumphs made in the face of adversity, the Deputy Mayor of Paris – Pierre Rabadan – opened up by having a short discussion in an Exclusive Essentiallysports Interview with Shreya Verma, our Paris Olympics correspondent.

The River Seine has been subjected to a notorious history of eleven metal and fecal bacteria levels since 1923. Recording severe levels of pollution, the river threatened to dampen the spirits of the Olympics to a great extent. Thus, with sixty days to go, the authorities stepped in. They launched an ambitious and almost impossible task of cleaning up all the mess and rejuvenating Paris’ lifeline.

Unfortunately, things did not change drastically. In June, just a month before the start of the games, the levels of E. coli bacteria found in the Seine were off-limits. Thus, when the triathletes successfully performed their routines, a series of broad smiles could be seen all over the faces of the authorities. And that is exactly what we saw on the face of the Paris Deputy Mayor.

The Deputy Mayor of Paris shares the biggest challenge leading up to the 2024 Olympics

After the successful conclusion of the triathlon event, the Paris Media Center was buzzing in anticipation. As we waited for Pierre Rabadan to address our queries, we listened to his awe-inspiring recollection of how challenging it was to make Siene ‘sane’ again.

Rabadan stated that the Seine River had lost its natural ecosystem and had become a dumping ground for sewage. The Deputy Mayor of Paris also highlighted that the initiative to cleanse the river was a longstanding process, running for eight years. With the announcement that Paris would be hosting the Olympics, the efforts were accelerated. 

Well, while listening to such a David vs. Goliath tale of triumph, our Essentiallysports Exclusive correspondent, Shreya, could not resist quenching her curiosity. Directing her questions to Rabadan, Shreya asked about the biggest challenges the Deputy Mayor faced in his quest to make Siene habitable once more.

Rabadan gave credit to all the people who joined hands to make the almost improbable-looking project a stark reality. He said, “Well, the main challenge was probably to be able to bring everyone together; but fortunately everyone shared the same will to reverse decades of, you know, considering the Seine as a part of – well, as a safety net of the sewage system – and everybody shared that will, and so yeah, the games gave us a collective goal, and that’s why we were able to achieve it.”

Rabadan further opened up about his take on trying again and again to achieve a particular goal. Clapping back at the naysayers who doubted the process, Rabadan said he was sure about the project’s success. He also attributed the major success to proper planning. The vibrant Deputy Mayor pointed out that since the operation was planned emphatically, everyone involved with the project had a clear vision of what was expected of them.

Rabadan seemed utterly relieved as he shared the news of the Seine recording more average days of clean water in recent days. Well, while the Deputy Mayor and the organizers can definitely share a good laugh now, the trials and tribulations were not a walk in the park.

While we sat at the media center, listening to Rabadan’s account of trials and tribulations, a shocking discovery came up. The authorities managed to revamp the entire sewage system in Paris! Rabadan pointed out that several households, especially the boats, were not connected to a proper sewage system. Thus, all the waste products got dumped into the Seine, making it inhabitable with each passing day. Rabadan, along with others who were in power, improved the Hostiletz storage facility to attend to the pain point.

The Deputy Mayor also pointed out that the Hostiletz facility was not the only one to have been constructed. There were many other initiatives taken to rapidly upgrade the quality of the water in the Seine River. He also narrated the efforts undertaken in other cities upstream to make sure that the pollutants are minimized in the waters of the Seine. And thus, thwarting all the red-eyed trolls, Paris is once again blooming in the glitz and glamor of the Olympics. And this time, Seine is also glistening. However, there is one hitch.

As the triathlon event finished, a swimmer was found vomiting at the finish line. This once again started the conversation about water pollution issues. But the internet community seemed divided about it, While some blamed the polluted water for it, others claimed it was just because of the exhaustion of the event. While we can not comment on what exactly caused it, the issue is still very much under the watchful eyes of swimming enthusiasts.

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