Rio Doctor: Olympians will 'Literally be Swimming in Human Crap'

Josh Luckenbaugh | July 28, 2016
DONATE
Font Size

The Rio Olympics are set to begin in less than a week, but it appears Guanabara Bay, which will host sailing, windsurfing and marathon swimming competitions, is far from in ideal condition, one local doctor going as far to say that athletes will "literally be swimming in human crap."

Despite assurances from officials that the waste-filled waters of the bay will be clean by the time the Games start, several reports have indicated that this will not be the case. An Associated Press analysis of the water completed last year "revealed dangerously high levels of viruses and bacteria from human sewage in Olympic and Paralympic venues, viruses "that are known to cause respiratory and digestive illnesses, including explosive diarrhea and vomiting, but can also lead to more serious heart, brain, and other diseases."

The AP concluded that "Olympic athletes are almost certain to come into contact with disease-causing viruses that in some tests measured up to 1.7 million times the level of what would be considered hazardous on a Southern California beach." And while the Brazilian government received $452 million in international funds to clean up Guanabara Bay, Bloomberg reports that about $59 million of that has been spent and at most only "about half the sewage [...] is being treated."

"Foreign athletes will literally be swimming in human crap, and they risk getting sick from all those microorganisms," local pediatrician Dr. Daniel Becker told The New York Times. "It's sad, but also worrisome."

Several athletes, including members of the Spanish and Australian sailing teams, have already come down with various illnesses as they train in Rio's waters. Health experts have advised competitors to keep their mouths closed during events so as not to expose themselves to the viruses in which they are swimming, sailing and windsurfing. 

Not only could the athletes be affected by the viruses in the water, but also the vast amount of rubbish floating in the bay could potentially play a role in deciding a medal race. Mat Belcher, a gold medalist sailor for Australia, discussed the debris he and teammate Will Ryan have encountered in Rio:

Two or three times a day we would be caught up with rubbish on our foil. We'd need to stop, slow the boat down completely and raise our foils. It's getting better, hopefully we can get it down to one or two a week. [...] It's not ideal. Inside the marina there's been a dramatic improvement, it's much more pleasant than having a raw sewage outlet where you launch your boat. But the water is still polluted and there's a lot of rubbish. We're hoping organisers can clean that up as we get closer to the Games. There's all sorts of rubbish - dead animals, furniture, plastic bags, a lot of Coke cans.

So close to the beginning of the Games, it's hard to imagine organizers being able to find another, less rancid venue. Officials have failed to adequately deal with this problem that has plagued Rio for years, and we can only pray no more athletes suffer the consequences. 

 

 

 

 

 

donate