Dr Christopher Elliot has summarized the heat and humidity challenge of the Tokyo Olympic Games. Here is an excerpt from his excellent paper: Clinical insights: Preparing for the Tokyo Olympics—Ensuring health and welfare of equine athletes in the face of heat and humidity.
The Olympic equestrian disciplines of Eventing, Jumping and Dressage made their Olympic debut in Paris 1900 but were absent in 1904 and 1908 before returning in 1912. Equestrian has been a permanent feature of every Olympic Games since. A variety of complex and often controversial factors contribute to the selection of future Olympic Games host cities. Unfortunately, climatic challenges and suitability to successfully host Equestrian events appears to rarely rate a mention.
The COVID‐19‐delayed Tokyo Olympics are scheduled for 23 July to 8 August of this year, placing them in the middle of the heat and humidity of the Japanese Summer. Tokyo regularly experiences temperatures in excess of 41°C (105°F) with human hospitalisations due to heat stroke numbering in the many thousands and deaths frequently 100+ in the months of July and August. The equestrian events of the Tokyo Games will be a challenge for all involved to ensure the health and safety of equine athletes.
Tokyo certainly is not the first time that extreme heat and humidity has challenged the viability of Equestrian events at the Olympic Games, and it won’t be the last. In the face of global climate change and future Olympics, host cities including Paris 2024 and Los Angeles 2028 both of which regularly experience hazardous heatwaves each summer, managing equine athletes in hot and humid conditions will be something veterinarians will be challenged with for many years to come. It is vital that we learn from the past to ensure the welfare of equine athletes in the future.
The aim of this editorial is to highlight the ground‐breaking research which followed the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
To read the full paper, please go to https://beva.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/evj.13446
The Equine Veterinary Journal (EVJ) is giving free access to The Special Collection: Preparing for Tokyo Olympics, which highlights the ground-breaking research which followed the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
