From the 17th century to the 2024 Olympic Games, a long history of swimming in the Seine

A pontoon, a staircase and a splash. On July 17, Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, in a wetsuit and swimming goggles, jumped into the Seine. A few days earlier, the Minister of Sports, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, had beaten her to it, even diving head first into the green and gray waters. The two women answered the question that has so captivated the media and observers since the Olympic Games were awarded to Paris in 2017: will we be able to swim in the Seine for the Olympic Games? After a vast €1.4 billion clean-up plan, the triathlon and open water swimming events of Paris 2024 were to take place there, if the impact of the recent rains is not too negative. And from 2025, Anne Hidalgo assures us, three bathing areas will allow swimming in the river. A return to normal, after a century of prohibition.

For a long time, Parisians washed their clothes, washed themselves and paddled in the river. In the 17th century, in place of the current quays, gently sloping beaches meant that, at the slightest heat, it was natural to dip a toe in. At one’s own risk since the river, with its fluctuating and powerful current, was very dangerous. At the time, drowning was one of the main causes of accidental deaths, as people did not know how to swim. The unfortunates found themselves exposed in front of the Grand Châtelet fortress, just like those found on the public highway.

That being said, the authorities’ concern was less about the dangers of the river than about the decency of bathers. There was outrage at their nudity and the debauchery that took place there. The authorities received complaints, particularly from parents on the very chic Île Saint-Louis, in the centre of the city, who were forced to relegate their children to their rooms to spare them the spectacle of impropriety under the windows. From the 18th century onwards, bathing was regulated: it had to be done while clothed.

Corpses, garbage, rats

Over time, the water becomes polluted. Although tanners and tripe traders were kept away from the river, the industrial revolution produced a lot of rubbish that was dumped there (animal corpses, industrial waste, faeces, etc.). The daring swimmer exposed himself at best to a nasty bout of gastroenteritis, at worst to the potentially fatal “rat disease”. But what weight do these diseases have compared to the pleasure of splashing around in the water? The 19th century was the century of floating pools on the Seine, including that of Deligny, opposite the National Assembly, named after the founder of the Royal Swimming School, which would survive until 1993 before sinking, weakened after being hit by a barge.

Despite its questionable healthiness, the river hosted the Olympic competitions of the Paris Games of 1900. However, swimming pools replaced it for those of 1924. In the meantime, a prefectural decree of 1923 prohibited swimming there because of its danger. Too polluted, too strong current, too much river traffic. Even today, a fine of 15 euros awaits bathers who offend, rescued by the river brigade.

Crossings tolerated

From the 1920s onwards, the first modern in-ground swimming pools emerged. But on summer weekends, these few establishments could not absorb the demand from Parisians looking for a refreshing dip. So, the quays of Paris were filled with bathers, eager to take a dip. The photographer Robert Doisneau immortalized a swimmer diving from the Pont d’Iéna in 1945. The children’s big game was to go under the boats. Buoys were placed everywhere on the banks to help swimmers in difficulty. And the police remained powerless against these crowds in swimsuits. The bathers were not necessarily aware that they were defying a ban, especially since major official races were organized in the Seine: the crossings. René Jouanny, 99 years old, took part in the one on August 18, 1944, a few days before the Liberation. He came fourth. “Each city had its own crossing,” he remembers. “We would leave from a beach, jump from a quay or a barge. In Paris, swimming was forbidden but the race was supported by the Swimming Federation.”

Since then, the crossings have disappeared in Paris and pollution has cooled the ardor of Sunday bathers. August smelled of fuel oil. Cars replaced bathers on the banks in the 1960s. The waters of the Seine seemed hostile… Until today. The future will tell whether the three bathing sites supposed to open to the public in the summer of 2025 will attract the crowds.