They had raced to drain green-tinged water out of the pool overnight at a venue that has embarrassed Rio organizers. According to officials, on August 5, someone accidentally added 160 liters of hydrogen peroxide, which neutralized the chlorine and let organic compounds grow including algae.
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‘On the day of the Opening Ceremonies of the Games, 80 litres of hydrogen peroxide was put in the water, ‘ explained venue manager Gustavo Nascimento.
The New York Times discovered the truth behind the oddly-colored Olympic diving and water polo pools at the Rio Olympics.
Mario Andrade, spokesman for Rio’s organising committee, said they had chose to go for a more “radical measure”, choosing to drain the pool and fill it with new water.
Asked if they had a Plan B, Andrada said: “We do but we always found Plan A is better than Plan B”. She concluded that they learned painful lessons the hard way. Wednesday. The water polo pool also turned green.
Synchronized swimming, where athletes have to be able to see each other below the surface, is scheduled to start Sunday.
But frantic organisers were forced into changing the water in one pool – a process that takes 10 hours – because synchronised swimmers and judges need a clear pool for competition. The International Olympic Committee said the Games are missing part of the so-called “look” that characterizes them. On Friday, a planned diving practice session had to be called off to give officials more time to clean the water.
Nascimento added that the participation of over 120 athletes in the diving pool had added to the “organics” in the water that were responsible for the colour change. “It’s fine, it’s flawless, it’s ready for competition”, said spokesman Mario Andrada. After failed attempts to change the color back to blue, the pool was drained and the water was changed.
Rio Olympics spokesman Mario Andrada said the “radical measure” had been taken after discussions with aquatics body FINA.
Prior to Saturday, even the authorities had different versions as to the cause of the green water such as sunlight and lack of wind. Nevertheless, some Australians complained that the green water bothered their eyes. When athletes began to use the pools, it goes the growth of the organic compounds.
The green pool saga is over, at least we hope it is.
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Officials have run the gamut on possible explanations, including algae bloom and a chemical imbalance caused by too many people using the pool.
