Paris Mayor Takes Pre-Olympics Dip To Prove Seine Clean

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo took a dip in the Seine to prove that a 1.4-billion-euro clean-up had left it ready to host outdoor Olympic swimming (Credit: AFP)

The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, swam in the murky waters of the Seine on Wednesday to demonstrate the river is now clean enough for outdoor Olympic swimming events.

Wearing goggles and a wet suit, the 65-year-old city leader swam breaststroke before immersing her face and beginning a front crawl, covering around 100 metres (yards) up and downstream.