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Tokyo (AFP) – A heat wave in Japan that has killed more than a dozen people is reviving concerns over the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, which will take place during the notoriously suffocating summer of country.
Hottest or wetter places than Tokyo, including Athens and Beijing, Japan's sweaty summers offer stifling heat and choke moisture in a particularly unpleasant, and sometimes deadly, combination.
The Olympic Authorities and the Tokyo Local Government
But some experts fear that efforts will not be enough, in a country where summer heat kills hundreds of people and heats tens of thousands each year.
will be held from July 24 to August 9, a period where temperatures can reach 37 degrees Celsius and where the humidity rises to over 80%.
"Compared to the past Olympics, it is fair to say that it will be the most severe games, with regard to the heat conditions," said Makoto Yokohari, professor of urban engineering at the University of Tokyo
The International Olympic Committee approved the start of the marathon at 7:00 am. "
And Tetsuo Egawa, senior director of planning for the operational strategy of the 2020 Tokyo Organizing Committee, is working on the event. other ways to fight heat
"The sports that raise the most concerns," he told AFP, citing marathon, sailing and canoeing, and golf as examples where "special measures" will be required.
Heat stroke, especially among spectators not used to heat, "
" We will have tents covering the waiting lines at the security gates … " (and) we aim to limit the lines Medical tents and rest areas will be air-conditioned
Stress can increase the risk of heat stroke, so organizers will try to keep viewers relaxed even in queues
"There may be to have small shows and entertainment … The summer heat is far from new to Tokyo, which is experiencing the "heat island" effect where urban areas are much warmer than surrounding areas, for reasons such as blocked air flow and lack of greenery.
Local authorities say Tokyo's temperature has risen three degrees Celsius over the last century, far more than the global rise of 0, 7-0.8 degrees.
Tokyo officials have been working on the problem for years, but efforts are accelerating before the Games.
A project aims to repopulate a Japanese tradition: "uchimizu", or sprinkling On the street to lower temperatures.
Another measure is the solar blocking "paint", which will cover the entire mar on the road, but not on the road, not on the sidewalks where the spectators will stay.
Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) officials say the pavement can reduce road-level temperatures up to eight degrees Celsius. laying a road surface capable of absorbing rain water, which evaporates when the temperature rises and cools the air.
– "Dangerous Conditions" –
"We take heat attenuation very seriously," said Susumu Matsushima
He said that 116 kilometers of road have already been treated, most with the solar coating.
"If you touch (the road), you can really feel the difference, especially on a sunny day."
But not everyone is convinced, some noting that when Tokyo hosted the Games Olympic Games in 1964, the Games were held in October to avoid the heat.
Yokohari studied the marathon route and warned will run in very dangerous conditions, "especially in the last quarter of the race when they pbad the Tokyo Imperial Palace." I believe that the athletes will feel significant damage to their bodies in this phase, "he told AFP
."
While the marathon will start early, Yokohari would prefer to see the route itself modified so that runners are in the shadows in later stages.
He says that plans to put trees in the shade are impracticable with only two years. Come on, and even suggest moving the marathon to a cooler place in northern Japan. "
" Unfortunately, the sense of urgency is not shared by the people involved, "he said, and are used to the heat … but how many are there? Between us in Tokyo spend hours outside in the heat of the month of August? "
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