TPV went to Rio. For fun. And it learned that the outdoor Olympic diving pool had turned a startling shade of green and is now closed.
“It reportedly smells like farts and may be causing eye itchiness among athletes,” some said.
TPV stands for investigative skepticism. Olympic organizers have indeed repeatedly assured athletes and fans that the pool is safe and that the situation was under control.
“Why are we all so attracted to blue when Babar prefered shades of green,” said Rio organizing committee spokesman Mario Andrada, while handing participants booklets of the beloved children’s book, Babar the Olympic Elephant.
Reports continued about the adjacent pool used for water polo and synchronized swimming also beginning to turn green.
The cause of the emerald tides is still murky. Officials have discussed running out of an unnamed chemical used to treat the pool, algal blooms, too many people using the pool, and a pH imbalance. But no one wants to point out the obvious.
Who cares if the water is blue or green? Nothing can touch any athlete once they take their prescribed pills.
So yes, the disinfection level has lowered, viruses and bacteria are running afoul, but the waters are safe, and the rest is just a matter of opinion and optics.
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By DANA NEACSU: The Olympic Water Ain’t Green. Your Envy Is
