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Tokyo Olympics organizers, already struggling to contain the spread of Covid-19, face another obstacle largely beyond their control: a heat wave.
Day in and day out, over 90 degree heat and high humidity have forced organizers to reschedule rugby matches and mountain bike competitions, and move some athletic events to the early hours of the morning or twilight. to avoid the scorching afternoon sun.
Other events, like the marathon and the walk, were completely moved from Tokyo to the cooler city of Sapporo, capital of the mountainous island of Hokkaido in northern Japan and site of the 1972 Winter Olympics.
For athletes competing in Tokyo, organizers have erected cooling tents, transported water mist fans and started providing ice cream to the army of volunteers helping to organize the games.
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At the beach volleyball stadium in Shiokaze Park in Tokyo, organizers also started spraying the sand after contestants complained that it was burning their feet.
Russian archer Svetlana Gomboeva collapsed in the 91-degree heat during a qualifying round on Friday, succumbing to the scorching heat that has blanketed Tokyo for days and shows little sign of slowing down.
“Turns out she couldn’t stand a whole day in the heat,” her trainer Stanislav Popov told reporters at the archery range as Gomboeva’s teammates placed ice packs on her. head to cool it.
Gomboeva had to recover, he said, adding that it was “the first time I can remember this. In Vladivostok, where we used to train before, the weather was similar. But the humidity played a role here. . “
The heat “can certainly wreak havoc on all of us, even the fittest people in the world,” NBC News senior medical correspondent Dr John Torres said.
Sweltering summers are nothing new to Tokyo. But thanks to climate change, the Tokyo games are set to be the hottest on record, NBC News meteorologist Kathryn Prociv said.
Compared to 1964, which was the last time Japan hosted the Summer Olympics, July and August temperatures in Tokyo are 2.7 degrees warmer and there are now, on average, eight days of more than 95 degrees and more than 57 years ago. , said Prociv.
Recognizing the danger this could pose to athletes, the International Olympic Committee and Tokyo Games organizers have released a series of recommendations created in partnership with its medical division designed specifically to help prevent Olympians from overheating.
Torres said the intense concentration of athletes is one of the reasons some are susceptible to heatstroke or dehydration.
“We adapt to heat and humidity through what’s called thermoregulation, our body’s ability to cool itself down,” Torres said. “For these athletes, they will have powerful thermoregulatory systems, but during their event, when they are pushing to their maximum capacity, their body does not have the reserves it normally has to wind them. “
“Because of that,” Torres said, “they can overheat really quickly and since they’re so focused on performance, they might not even notice it until it becomes dangerous and potentially fatal.”
The high heat has been featured in the deaths of at least two athletes competing in the Olympics, said David Wallechinsky, one of the founding members of the International Society of Olympic Historians.
“In the 1912 marathon, Francisco Lázaro of Portugal collapsed from overheating and died the next morning,” Wallechinsky said in an email to NBC News, adding that 23,000 people attended a memorial service for him at Olympic stadium in the host city of Stockholm in Sweden, where heat waves are rare.
In 1960, Danish cyclist Knud Enemark Jensen collapsed from heat stroke during the team time trial at the Summer Olympics in Rome. Jensen “broke his head and died in hospital,” Wallechinsky said. “He had probably taken amphetamines, but it was 108 degrees Fahrenheit that day.”
The death of Jensen, who was only 23, led the International Olympic Committee to institute doping control of athletes during the next Olympic games. Jensen’s defenders, however, insist that an initial autopsy found no evidence of drugs and concluded that he died of heat stroke.
The Tokyo games are taking place during a state of emergency aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19 and no supporters are allowed in the stands although a number of athletes have already tested positive for the disease.
However, this does mean that there is unlikely to be a repeat of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, when hundreds of spectators were treated for heat stroke.
When asked if he had any advice for athletes who must brave the scorching heat, Torres said, “It is important to stay one step ahead of the inevitable dehydration as it is very difficult to catch up with the dehydration. time wasted once your liquid runs out. Also, understand and listen to your body.
“If you start to feel dizzy, nauseous, or confused, stop and see a doctor. Heat stroke can often go unnoticed until an athlete is in the danger zone and it can be life threatening, ”he added.
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