With several thousand IRONMAN triathletes expected in Louisville on Sunday, October 11 for the annual IRONMAN Louisville triathlon, the Kentucky Division of Water, the Kentucky Department of Public Health and representatives from IRONMAN are working together over the next few days to assess the safety conditions of the Ohio River on race day after harmful algal blooms were confirmed in the Louisville area.
Harmful algal blooms in the Ohio River prompted a recreational advisory that extends from the West Virginia state line to the Cannelton Locks and Dam located in Hancock County, Kentucky. Because the swim portion of the IRONMAN triathlon takes place in the affected area, IRONMAN and the Kentucky Division of Water will confirm water test results are within safe levels prior to inclusion of the swim.
The Division of Water has agreed to perform as many as four sampling and testing cycles in and around the race course at least three days before the race to confirm the presence or absence of harmful algal blooms in the river. If the recreational advisory can be lifted, even hours before the race is scheduled to start, the swim may go on as planned. Visual confirmation of no harmful algal blooms and consecutive negative tests for microcystin toxins are the standard for the Division of Water and the Department of Public Health to lift the advisory.
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