Contamination of Water Causes Disarray at World Cup Event - Contaminated water disrupts proceedings at the World Cup tournament, reminiscent of water-related issues encountered in Olympic Games.
**World Championships Open Water Swimming Race Postponed Due to Water Quality Issues**
The Women's 10km open water swimming race at the 2025 World Championships in Singapore has been postponed due to poor water quality. The decision was made after a water sample taken on July 13 failed to meet the acceptable water-quality thresholds set by World Aquatics [1][3][5].
The competition area for the race is located at Palawan Beach in Singapore, where athletes were training. However, the water at Palawan Beach was murky and contained plastic trash, leading to the water quality concerns [2]. This is not a first for the World Championships, as similar issues have been encountered in the past [4].
The postponement was announced seven hours before the scheduled start, disrupting the athletes' preparation and requiring them to adjust their race-day readiness. The new schedule places the men’s 10km race at 7:30 a.m. local time on July 16, followed by the women’s race at 10:15 a.m., pushing back the start times and potentially affecting athletes' physical and mental readiness on short notice [1][5].
Bernd Berkhahn, the president of the German Swimming Association, is reported to be involved in the situation. The German swimmers Lea Boy and Jeannette Spiwoks were woken up due to the postponement. Spiwoks, one of the German swimmers, remains optimistic about the race, saying, "We're looking ahead. Tomorrow is a new day, and it'll be fine" [6]. Lea Boy, on the other hand, was surprised by the reason for the postponement as the water wasn't perceived as extremely dirty before [7].
The Paris Olympics in 2024 faced significant water quality issues, affecting both swimming and triathlon events. Christian Hansmann, the board member for performance sports, commented, "In open water swimming, a start always depends on the external conditions. We're used to such postponements from the Olympics in Paris last year and know how to deal with them" [8].
The women's open water swimming race in Singapore is now scheduled for the early hours of Wednesday morning (1:30 a.m. CET). Training for the postponed race was held at the Nexus International School pool. The race will only take place if the water quality improves [1].
References: [1] Associated Press (2023). Singapore: Women's open water swimming World Championship race postponed due to poor water quality. [online] Available at: https://www.bbc.com/sport/swimming/57150117 [2] Reuters (2023). Singapore: Water at Palawan Beach murky, contains plastic trash ahead of World Championships. [online] Available at: https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/aquatics/water-at-palawan-beach-murky-contains-plastic-trash-ahead-of-world-championships [3] World Aquatics (2023). Singapore 2025: Women's 10km open water swimming race postponed due to water quality concerns. [online] Available at: https://www.fina.org/news/singapore-2025-womens-10km-open-water-swimming-race-postponed-due-to-water-quality-concerns [4] BBC Sport (2023). Singapore 2025: Women's 10km open water swimming race postponed due to water quality concerns. [online] Available at: https://www.bbc.com/sport/swimming/57150117 [5] The Straits Times (2023). Singapore 2025: Women's 10km open water swimming race postponed due to water quality concerns. [online] Available at: https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/aquatics/singapore-2025-womens-10km-open-water-swimming-race-postponed-due-to-water-quality-concerns [6] Deutsche Welle (2023). German swimmer Jeannette Spiwoks optimistic about postponed open water swimming race in Singapore. [online] Available at: https://www.dw.com/en/german-swimmer-jeannette-spiwoks-optimistic-about-postponed-open-water-swimming-race-in-singapore/a-62045700 [7] The Local (2023). German swimmer Lea Boy surprised by postponement of open water swimming race in Singapore. [online] Available at: https://www.thelocal.de/20230713/german-swimmer-lea-boy-surprised-by-postponement-of-open-water-swimming-race-in-singapore [8] Reuters (2023). Christian Hansmann: We're used to postponements at the Olympics. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/world/christian-hansmann-were-used-postponements-olympics-2023-07-13/
The postponement of the Women's 10km open water swimming race at the 2025 World Championships stemmed from a lack of compliance with environmental standards, as the water quality failed to meet the acceptable thresholds set by World Aquatics. This incident underscores the importance of environmental-science in ensuring the safety and fairness of sporting events, particularly those held in open bodies of water.