“Heat, humidity and corona” worry athletes before the start of the Tokyo Olympics

From the half-marathon that was experimentally held a few days ago in Tokyo in high heat.

AFP

The sweltering heat and high humidity expected during the Olympic Games in Tokyo have forced athletes to prepare their bodies for these harsh conditions in a mandatory step on the road to an Olympic medal.

The high temperature and high humidity in Tokyo and a number of Japanese cities, along with the danger of the Corona virus, and the precautionary measures associated with it, are seriously afflicting athletes before the start of the upcoming Olympic Games.

At the heart of the "thermal room" of the National Institute of Sport, Experience and Performance in Paris, French marathon runner Hassan Shahdi appeared bare-chested, sweating, as he sprinted quietly on the treadmill.

The temperature is 34 degrees Celsius, the humidity is 70%, and the air is very heavy.

After an hour of running, Shahdi came out of the dark room, weighed, measured his sweat, and assessed fatigue and sensations, as he had done the day before, and as he would do the next day.

At the end of May, the 32-year-old was following a protocol to adapt to the heat, which is the real enemy of performance, especially in endurance sports.

“With moisture, sweat evaporates less, so the skin cools less,” says Julian Perrier, a researcher at the University of Canberra in Australia and a Canadian specialist in heat adaptation.

Our body temperature increases, our heart rate increases, we become dehydrated, and when we lose a lot of water, it reduces our ability to sweat.”

In order to better cope with these adverse effects, participants in many sports (athletics, triathlon, windsurfing, rugby and other sports) decided to adapt to the conditions on a daily basis before a period of time from the games scheduled from July 23 to August 8, where The temperature will be between 32 and 35 degrees Celsius and the humidity between 70 and 80%.

Specialists recommend at least one camp (between 10 days and two weeks) several weeks before the competition, with moderate effort over the course of an hour or an hour and a half, such as a hot bath.

"In the beginning we sweat a lot, we feel that the body is adapting," Shahdi said during his second camp.

In the first 15 minutes it is very hot and then we sweat and feel comfortable.”

Shahdi felt the benefits of what he underwent during his participation in the half marathon in Djibouti last February.

These protocols are necessary for athletes before Tokyo (or Sapporo where the walks and marathons have been moved by decision of the International Olympic Committee), even if they do not guarantee success in the Land of the Rising Sun.

"tropical beast"

And about this matter, a specialist in sports medicine, Sebastien Rascinet: “Man is a tropical beast with a good thermoregulation, and everyone can adapt to the heat.

Human thermoregulation and endurance have been an advantage in the evolution to hunt stronger and faster animals.”

"All athletes will benefit from training in the heat, however you can have two players of the same level who respond completely differently."

He revealed, “With exposure to heat, we can get a 10% decrease in performance, and therefore the goal of adaptation is to compensate for this decrease in performance.

Depending on the sport, the athlete and the exact circumstances, we can compensate for all or part of this decrease.”

"Other training protocols such as altitude training sessions provide 1% of performance, so acclimatization is much more important than all other types of final preparation," he explains.

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