RIO DE JANEIRO // The governing body of world sailing said it will do its own testing of Rio’s Olympic waters after an investigation showed serious health risks to athletes competing in venues rife with raw sewage.
“We’re going to find someone who can do the testing for us that can safely cover what we need to know from a virus perspective as well as the bacteria perspective,” said Peter Sowrey, chief executive of the International Sailing Federation (ISAF).
Sowrey said the investigation of water pollution in the Olympic city helped “wake us up again and put this back on the agenda.”
The sailing venue in Rio’s Guanabara Bay is badly polluted, as is a separate venue for rowing and canoeing – the Rodrigo de Freitas lake – in central Rio. The investigation also showed venues for triathlon and open-water swimming off Copacabana Beach had high virus levels that pose a threat to athletes and tourists.
Sowrey took over a month ago as chief executive of the International Sailing Federation.
“I want to make sure that everyone who goes out in the water is as safe as possible and is given the right guidance and right security,” Sowrey said.
The analysis of water quality showed dangerously high levels of viruses and bacteria from sewage in venues where about 1,400 athletes will compete in water sports at the Rio Games, which open on August 5, 2016.
Olympic organisers and the Brazilian government have tested only for bacteria to decide if the water is safe. But many experts say viruses are a far bigger problem and need to be monitored.
In Rio, much of the waste and sewage goes untreated and runs down hillside ditches and streams into Olympic water venues that are littered with floating rubbish, household waste and even dead animals.
In a statement, the World Health Organization said it has suggested the IOC start monitoring for viruses at the Rio venues.
“WHO has also advised the IOC to widen the scientific base of indicators to include viruses,” the statement said. “The risk assessment should be revised accordingly, pending the results of further analysis.” At the world swimming championships in Kazan, Russia, swimmers said they are worried about the situation at Rio.
“The athletes and the athletes’ commission have expressed their concern at the current problems with the quality of water, the cleanliness of the water,” said Vladimir Salnikov, a former Olympic gold medallist. “That will be put into a recommendation and people will pay attention to that. However, they can’t influence things any other way.”
A triathlon test event was scheduled Saturday despite the government’s own report earlier in the week showing parts of Copacabana Beach were unfit for swimming.
When Rio was awarded the Olympics in 2009, it promised cleaning its waters would be an Olympic legacy. But mayor Eduardo Paes has repeatedly acknowledged this will not be done, calling it a “lost opportunity.”
Sowrey said the ISAF would no longer rely solely on Brazil’s government analysis.
“We want to make sure we keep pressure on the organising committee and the Brazilians to make sure they put some energy into cleaning up the bay,” Sowrey said. “My job it to make sure something actually happens and it’s not just talk, and someone is actually walking the walk.”
Sowrey said a “backup plan” included sailing all the events outside Guanabara Bay in the open Atlantic. The ISAF has three courses there, and three inside the bay. He said it would be “heartbreaking” to sail outside the bay and lose the postcard backdrop of Sugarloaf Mountain, which will be a focus of television coverage. In most Olympics, sailing is contested far from the main Olympic venues. In Rio, the sailors and rowers and canoeists get centre stage – a chance to win fans and valuable sponsors.
“We’re not going to sacrifice health for the sake of good pictures and good TV,” he said. “But I think the backdrop of Rio is amazing and will do something for the sport of sailing.”
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