Irish Olympic swimmer Daniel Wiffen appears to be the latest victim of the Seine River.
The Olympian had to be rushed to the hospital before Sunday’s Closing Ceremony at the Stade de France in Paris.
The swimmer was meant to carry the Irish flag for the event, but he had a medical emergency.
Daniel Wiffen finished in 18th place after a grueling 10km swim through the River Seine.
He has now revealed that he became “very unwell” ahead of the closing ceremony, having been chosen as one of Ireland’s flagbearers at the Stade de France.
“Thanks everyone who reached out, I’m incredibly disappointed to miss out on the opportunity to be flag bearer last night,” Wiffen said on social media.
“Yesterday I rushed to hospital as I was very unwell with a bug that I am being treated for, and I am feeling better now. I hope everyone enjoys the evening and I hope to be well enough to seeing everyone when we get home.”
Thanks everyone who reached out, I’m incredibly disappointed to miss out on the opportunity to be flag bearer last night.
Yesterday I rushed to hospital as I was very unwell with a bug that I am being treated for, and am feeling better now. I hope everyone enjoys the evening…
— Daniel Wiffen (@WiffenDaniel) August 12, 2024
Because of how bad he felt in the event, he also annonced he was retiring from open water swims due to how bad it was.
“It was probably one of the worst things I’ve ever done,” he told RTE. “I’m retiring from open water.”
“It’s probably one of the worst things I’ve ever done” 😂
Never change Daniel Wiffen, never change 🤣👏#rteolympics #paris2024 #teamireland pic.twitter.com/vdv1bhRH2f
— RTÉ2 (@RTE2) August 9, 2024
Paris reportedly spent billions to clean up the River Seine ahead of the Summer Olympics, but they had problems due to rain in the area.
Irish Swimmer Daniel Wiffen Had a Dynamic 2024 Paris Olympics
Irish swimmer Daniel Wiffen was “rushed to hospital” after being forced to withdraw from the closing ceremony due to illness, but that shouldn’t diminish his performance in Paris.
Wiffen secured gold in the 800-meter freestyle at La Defense Arena, making history as the first Irish man to win an Olympic gold in the pool.
Not only that, he also secured a bronze medal in the 1,500m freestyle.
