Average temperature during summer Olympics months has risen by 3.1°C since the last Olympics was held at Paris in 1924
The Eiffel Tower and the Seine river in Paris. iStock photo
The Paris Olympic, scheduled to start on July 24, may turn out to be the hottest Olympics ever and can prove to be a significant threat, even fatal, for athletes under intense heat exposure, according to a report published on June 18.
The report has been prepared by climate scientists and is backed by frontline global athletes. It is a strange coincidence that that the city where the global climate treaty was signed nearly a decade back, in 2015, is suffering from the threat of severe climate impact during the global showpiece event.
The report, Rings of Fire: Heat Risks at the 2024 Paris Olympics, has been prepared jointly by United Kingdom-based University of Portsmouth (UK), the British Association for Sustainability in Sport (UK), Climate Central (USA), and FrontRunners (Australia).
“The Tokyo Games became known as the ‘hottest in history,’ with temperatures exceeding 34°C and humidity reaching nearly 70%, leading to severe health risks for competitors. The Paris Games have the potential to surpass that, with climate change driven by the burning of fossil fuels contributing to record heat streaks during the past months,” reads the report, a copy of which is with this reporter.
“With global temperatures continuing to rise, climate change should increasingly be viewed as an existential threat to sport,” observed Lord Sebastian Coe, president of the International Association of Athletics Federation and 4-time Olympic medalist.
The highest-ranking triathlete in Indian history, Pragnya Mohan, also described the situation as being “scary (and) can be fatal” and recounted how she can no longer train in her home country because of the heightened heat.
Mercury gets the medal
The report has pointed out that the average temperature during the months of the 2024 Summer Olympic Games is on course to rise by 3.1°C since 1924, the year of the last Olympics in France.
“The mean minimum temperatures – which represent night-time temperatures – have increased by 3.3°C, while the number of days with a maximum temperature of at least 30°C in Paris has become increasingly common,” states the report.
“2023 was the hottest year on record according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service and 2024 has continued this streak. April 2024 was warmer globally than any previous April in the record books,” pointed out the climate experts.
The Rings of Fire report has reminded the deadly heatwave in France in 2003 — which killed over 14,000 people — and subsequent years of record-breaking temperatures, exceeding 42°C; and underscored the heightened risk of extreme heat during the Paris Olympics, especially considering the sharp rise in the region’s temperatures since Paris last hosted the Games a century back.
The report mentioned that the 2023 heatwave in France claimed nearly 5,000 lives; and 2024 is on track to be the hottest year ever, breaking the 2023 record.
Athletes wary of consequences
Leading global athletes are warning that the intense heat expected at the Paris Olympics during July and August may lead to athletes collapsing, and in worst case scenarios, even dying during the games. Eleven Olympians, including winners of five world championships and six Olympic medals, shared the concern of possible heat impacts on athletes alongside climate scientists and leading heat physiologists from the University of Portsmouth.
The report reminded that Daniil Medvedev, ace Tennis player from Russia and currently five in the ATP ranking, got severely affected by heat and humidity during a match in Tokyo Olympics and said, “I’m a fighter, I will finish the match, but I can die,” when the chair umpire asked whether he could continue. “If I die, is the ITF (International Tennis Federation) going to take responsibility?” he asked.
The question reverberates among athletes in the runup to Paris Olympic.
“It’s a terrifying prospect when we see the direction things are heading and how rapidly the climate is deteriorating around us,” said Katie Rood, a striker for New Zealand’s football team. “It is not in an athlete’s DNA to stop and if the conditions are too dangerous, I do think there is a risk of fatalities,” agreed Jamie Farndale, a rugby player for Great Britain.
Japanese race walker and 2019 World Champion Yusuke Suzuki explained how heat-triggered illness derailed his Tokyo Olympic dreams; while New Zealand tennis player and Olympic bronze medallist Marcus Daniell opined that the heat risk at Tokyo was bordering on being fatal.
“Even if such extreme will not happen, the performance of the athletes is definitely going to suffer,” said a senior official attached to the National Olympic Association.
The report recommended several key steps for sporting authorities to counter the situation, including; smart scheduling to avoid heat extremes and keeping athletes and fans safe with better rehydration and cooling plans.
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