The World Aquatics, in conjunction with the organising committee of the 2025 World Championships in Singapore, has decided to postpone the women’s 10 km open water swimming event due to water quality issues.
Samples taken on July 13 showed that the permissible values had been exceeded. World Aquatics emphasised that the postponement of the race was due to the priority of the health and safety of the participants.
The competition was originally scheduled to take place on the night of July 14. It will now start on July 26. The men’s race will take place earlier on the same day.
The World Aquatics Championships are being held in Singapore from July 11 to August 3.
A similar situation occurred in Paris in 2024. The Olympic organisers were concerned about pollution in the Seine River, which could have led to the cancellation or postponement of the open water swimming world championships scheduled as part of the Olympics.
The fact is that the water quality in the Seine did not meet the safety requirements for the competition. In particular, the cause for concern was sewage that flows into the river during rainfall.
The Olympic organisers took a number of measures to improve the water quality in the Seine, including the construction of new treatment plants and a reservoir to collect and treat rainwater. The Prefect of Paris and the Île-de-France region, Marc Guillaume, stated that these measures should significantly reduce the level of pollution in the river and expressed confidence that the water in the Seine would be safe by the start of the competition.
However, despite concerns, the swimming competitions in the Seine during the Olympics went ahead as planned. In July 2025, the public was allowed to swim in the Seine, which shows that the water quality has improved a lot.
