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River Seine reopens to first Paris swimmers after century-long ban

River Seine reopens to first Paris swimmers after century-long ban
A lifeguard sets up gear at the Pont Marie safe bathing site on the River Seine on its opening day in Paris on July 5, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 05 July 2025

River Seine reopens to first Paris swimmers after century-long ban

River Seine reopens to first Paris swimmers after century-long ban
  • The seasonal opening of the Seine for swimming is seen as a key legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympics
  • A few dozen swimmers arrived ahead of the Saturday morning opening for the long awaited moment

PARIS: The River Seine reopened to Parisian swimmers on Saturday morning for the first time since 1923, offering locals and tourists a welcome respite after a scorching temperatures.

A few dozen swimmers arrived ahead of the opening at 8:00 a.m. (0600 GMT) for the long awaited moment, diving into the water under the watchful eye of lifeguards, an AFP journalist said.

The seasonal opening of the Seine for swimming is seen as a key legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympics, when open water swimmers and triathletes competed in its waters which were specially cleaned for the event.

The swimming zones are equipped with changing rooms, showers, and beach-style furniture, offering space for 150 to 300 people to relax, lay out their towels, and unwind from the city’s hustle and bustle.

The promise to lift the swimming ban dates back to 1988, when then-mayor of Paris and future president Jacques Chirac first advocated for its reversal.


Monumental art displayed in shade of Egypt’s pyramids

Monumental art displayed in shade of Egypt’s pyramids
Updated 11 November 2025

Monumental art displayed in shade of Egypt’s pyramids

Monumental art displayed in shade of Egypt’s pyramids
  • “There is an estimate that it’s more or less five million people reached by the message of the Third Paradise”
  • A thousand small cylindrical acrylic mirrors planted in the sand compose a Morse code poem imagining a dialogue between Tangun, the legendary founder of the first Korean kingdom, and an Egyptian pharaoh

CAIRO: Installations by renowned international artists including Italy’s Michelangelo Pistoletto and Portugal’s Alexandre Farto have been erected in the sand under the great pyramids of Giza outside Cairo.
The fifth edition of the contemporary art exhibition “Forever is Now” is due to run to December 6.
The 92-year-old Pistoletto’s most famous work, Il Terzo Paradiso, comprises a three-meter-tall mirrored obelisk and a series of blocks tracing out the mathematical symbol for infinity in the sand.
“We have done more than 2,000 events all around the world, on five continents, in 60 nations,” said Francesco Saverio Teruzzi, construction coordinator in Pistoletto’s team.
“There is an estimate that it’s more or less five million people reached by the message of the Third Paradise.”
The Franco-Beninese artist King Houndekpinkou presented “White Totem of Light,” a column composed of ceramic fragments recovered from a factory in Cairo.
“It’s an incredible opportunity to converse with 4,500 years — or even more — of history,” he told AFP.
South Korean artist Jongkyu Park used the measurements of the Great Pyramid of Giza to create the geometric structures of his installation “Code of the Eternal.”
A thousand small cylindrical acrylic mirrors planted in the sand compose a Morse code poem imagining a dialogue between Tangun, the legendary founder of the first Korean kingdom, and an Egyptian pharaoh.
Farto, better known as Vhils, collected doors in Cairo and elsewhere in the world for a bricolage intended to evoke the archaeological process.
Six other artists, including Turkiye’s Mert Ege Kose, Lebanon’s Nadim Karam, Brazil’s Ana Ferrari, Egypt’s Salha Al-Masry and the Russian collective “Recycle Group,” are also taking part.