Paris Plunge

“The general mood around swimming in the Seine, which flows through the center of Paris, has been one of skepticism. There have been legitimate concerns about pollution and high bacteria levels, of course, but there have also been petulant calls on social media to take a dump in the river. Even my colleagues have asked me to make sure my health insurance plan would cover any strange new growths I might develop,” Che wrote for Bloomberg News on July 17, after surviving a swim in the river. Ahead of the summer Olympics, France has earmarked $1.5 billion to clean up the Seine so triathletes will feel safe swimming in it during their races. 

Che, a Bloomberg editor based in Paris, swam in the Seine on the same day the city’s mayor, Anne Hidalgo, fulfilled a longstanding promise to do the same.