Beijing, July 5th (Xinhua) -- At 8:00 am local time on the 5th, dozens of Parisian citizens jumped into the Seine River under the gaze of lifeguards, enjoying the pleasure of swimming in the scorching summer. This is the first time after more than a century of bans that the Seine River has opened up an area for people to swim. The seasonal opening of the Seine River is also an important legacy left by the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. On July 26, 2024, the opening ceremony of the 33rd Summer Olympics was held in Paris, France. This is a photo of the Seine River taken from a helicopter perspective. According to multiple media reports, there are currently three swimming areas in the Seine River section of Paris, one located just a step away from the Eiffel Tower, one near Notre Dame Cathedral, and the other in the east of Paris. This summer, from July 5th to August 31st, if weather permits, people can swim in these three areas. A regulation issued at the end of June stipulates that individuals swimming outside designated areas will face fines. The Seine River runs through the center of Paris, dividing the city into left and right banks. According to the French newspaper Le Monde, over 100 years ago, it was common for Parisians to swim in the Seine River. When Paris held its first Olympic Games in 1900, swimming competitions were held in the Seine River. Later, due to water pollution and safety hazards, the government officially banned swimming in the Seine River in 1923. On July 1st, tourists cool off on the banks of the Seine River in Paris, France. Recently, several European countries including France have experienced high temperatures, and Paris is experiencing a severe heatwave. On June 30th, the French Meteorological Agency issued an orange heatwave alert for 84 provinces across the country, and several provinces upgraded to a red alert on July 1st. The Paris city government said that after a week of hot weather, it is expected that a large number of people will go swimming in the Seine River this weekend to cool off. Paris city officials have taken multiple measures to ensure that people can swim safely, including daily water quality testing and physical testing of swimmers, from "polluted waterways" to "citizen swimming pools". They remind swimmers to be aware of potential dangers, including strong currents and an average depth of 3.5 meters. According to reports, each swimming area is equipped with changing rooms and shower rooms, and beach leisure facilities can accommodate 150 to 300 people. In 1988, the then mayor of Paris and former French president Chirac first advocated for the lifting of the ban, but was unsuccessful. In July 2023, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo announced that some water sports events of the 2024 Paris Olympics would be held on the Seine River, and from 2025 onwards, the public would be officially allowed to swim in this river, thus lifting the swimming ban from a hundred years ago. As early as a few years ago, the Paris government began to implement the Seine River purification project, and cumulatively invested about 1.4 billion euros to upgrade the sewage and rainstorm runoff treatment facilities in Paris to improve the water quality of Seine River and its main tributary, the Marne River. However, during the opening ceremony of last year's Paris Olympics, the continuous rainfall caused an increase in the levels of pollutants such as E. coli in the Seine River, resulting in the cancellation of triathlon swimming training activities and the postponement of the competition. Fortunately, the competition was eventually held. On August 8, 2024, the contestants were in the competition. On that day, the women's 10 kilometer marathon swimming competition of the Paris Olympics was held on the Seine River in Paris. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xue Yuge. French President Macron wrote on social media platform X: "One of my predecessors (Chirac), the mayor of Paris at the time, dreamed of a Seine River where everyone could swim." Macron said that the lifting of the ban was the result of "collective efforts" and a "proud" moment for France. (New Society)