Olympic swimming in the Seine highlights efforts to clean up city rivers worldwide

Aug 8, 2023

After years of clean-up efforts, the Seine river will be reopened for swimming in 2024, when it will host Olympic swimming events.

The Seine River in Paris will reopen for swimming in 2024, when it will host Olympic swimming events. Image: Pexels/Jo Kassis

Gary Osmond

Associate Professor of Sport History, The University of Queensland

Rebecca Olive

Vice Chancellor's Senior Research Fellow, Social and Global Studies Centre, RMIT University

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Freddie Lane emerges from the Seine after winning Olympic gold. Image: Wikimedia Commons

Chairman Mao’s swimming of the Yangtze River was front-page news in the Liberation Army Daily in 1966.

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The Birrarung/Yarra in Melbourne is one of many rivers to have benefited from efforts to restore its health in recent years. Image: Daniel Pockett/AAP

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