|
 |   |
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
|  |
Triathletes to get electronic anti-shark protection
SYDNEY, Sept 8 (AFP) - Competitors in the Olympic triathlon are to be tracked on the swim leg by divers carrying electronic devices used to ward off sharks. The event's organisers said Friday they had decided to use the South African-designed device - called a Shark Pod - not because they thought there was any risk of an actual attack but to ensure that none of the competitors were affected by a string of scare stories that have appeared in the runup to the Games. "We are not concerned about sharks," stressed Triathlon Competition Manager David Hansen, referring to a recent report commissioned by the Sydney organising committee which concluded that the chance of an attack was "virtually nil." But he ackowledged that some competitors from outside Australia may have been unsettled by the scare stories. "International competitors may have reservations, but we want all athletes going into the competition at the same level, not concerned about sharks." Olympic organisers have spent months playing down the risk of an attack during the triathlon. The last fatal shark attack in Sydney harbour dates back to 1963 and there has not been one between May and November for more than 200 years. Shark Pods, which are attached to divers' air tanks and one fin operate by emitting a seven-metre (23-foot) wide electromagnetic field which disturbs sharks' senses, causing them to swim away. The divers will carry the devices about two metres below and slightly behind each of the triathletes during their 1.5km swim around the Sydney Opera House. Shark Pods were invented in South Africa by the Natal Sharks Board. They have been shown to work most effectively against big sharks. Britain's Simon Lessing, the favourite for gold in the men's event, meanwhile unveiled his own solution to the supposed shark danger. "It shouldn't be a problem - just swim faster," he joked.
|
