South African triathlete Vicky van der Merwe, who finished in 46th place in the women's event on Wednesday morning, says the swim leg in the Seine River was one of the toughest swims she has even undertaken.
Speaking to the media after the race Van der Merwe said that she had almost died.
“For me it was a tough day, I literally almost died in that swim,” she said.
“For all of us, it was very uncertain what was going to happen. It’s not conditions that we are used to and it’s definitely a first for a lot of athletes,” she said, referring to the fact that the men’s triathlon had been postponed on Tuesday after the pollution levels in the Seine were deemed to be unacceptably high.
Indeed the organisers only decided that the women’s event would go ahead on Wednesday morning following a check on bacterial levels at 4am.
“I 100% prepared like it was going to happen. We South Africans are really good at adapting to the circumstances.
“When I got to my bike after the swim it was on the ground. Not sure if it was for that.
“A tough day for me, but I’m just happy that I could keep on fighting until the end. I managed to pass a few girls in the run, but that swim really was tough and I did the best I could.
“It’s definitely not the result that I trained for and hoped for. But the experience was incredible and the crowds were incredible,” she said.
Van der Merwe ended more than 10 minutes behind the gold medal winner, Cassandre Beaugrand of host nation France. She wasn’t last and, unlike several other competitors, she did cross the finish line after completing the gruelling 1500m swim, 40km cycle and 10km run.
TRIATHLON : Team SA's Vicky van der Merwe was 46th in the women's triathlon final. ...Henri Schoeman and Jamie Riddle will be competing in the men's final from 10h45 #Olympics #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/MddRFjp3Kr
— Tracksuit (@ThabisoMosia) July 31, 2024
