In 70 years, it’ll be too hot to run a marathon in the Summer Olympics in most cities in the world.
A new article published in The Lancet by a group of climate researchers says that rising temperatures caused by climate change will prevent athletes from being able to perform some outdoor Olympic events.
By predicting a city’s wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT), a measurement that takes into account both temperature and humidity, the study says only 33 of over 700 cities in the northern hemisphere will be cool and dry enough to host the games in 2085. Everywhere else will have a WBGT of over 26 C, which they say is the maximum temperature at which athletes can run a marathon safely.
Vancouver and Calgary are the only two Canadian cities which will qualify, the study states, though it’s worth noting that while both cities have previously hosted the Olympics, they hosted the Winter Games, not the summer ones.
READ MORE: How climate change will affect Canadians
Rising temperatures have already affected endurance events like the marathon, report author Kirk Smith, a professor at the University of California, told Global News.
The annual Madison, Wisc., marathon has been permanently rescheduled to December, and nearly 30 per cent of competitors in the U.S. men’s qualifying race in Los Angeles weren’t able to finish after the temperature rose to 25 C.
“You can avoid this … you can run the marathon indoors, you can run it in January instead of July, but it’s not the same,” Smith said.
“Having the Olympics in December doesn’t sound like the [Summer] Olympics anymore. It sounds like something else.”
The Winter Olympics are also affected by rising temperatures. A 2014 study by the University of Waterloo found that only six of the 19 cities that previously hosted the games would be cold enough or have enough snow to reliably host.
Smith says he is hoping focusing the article on an iconic event like the Olympics can help people take climate change more seriously.
“We’ve held a marathon for 2,500 years since the Greeks did it … and now we can’t anymore. There’s a change in the world,” he said.
“If things are getting that touchy for our most elite athletes, then what’s happening to the rest of us?”
Smith explained that around half of the world works outdoors, in jobs in agriculture and construction, and they face the same risk of exhaustion as the athletes as temperatures rise.
Other options for hosting the Olympics
Climate and temperature is only one constraint that the IOC looks at when choosing a city to host the games.
But there have also been calls recently to change the format of the Olympics to stay in the same city instead of picking a new host every four years.
While the proposal isn’t new, The Atlantic reports, it would provide an opportunity to avoid political and economic troubles, like Rio may face once the games are over.
David Goldblatt, author of The Games: A Global History of the Olympics, suggests using a network of nearby cities which would allow for countries to share the burden.
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