Tokyo Olympic chiefs ask for input to fight 2020 heat

Olympic rings are pictured near the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on May 22, 2019. – Japan will host the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics from July 24 to August 9 next year. (Photo by Charly TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

Tokyo Olympics organizers have sent out questionnaires to international sports federations seeking advice on how to counter the searing heat expected in the Japanese capital during the 2020 Games.

However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was adamant Thursday that the move was not prompted by the devastating physical effects of the heat during the ongoing world athletics championships in Doha.

Tokyo “sent a questionnaire to international federations on measures to take” to fight the heat, said IOC president Thomas Bach after a meeting of the group’s executive commission.

“This questionnaire was already sent before Doha. The Tokyo organizers are determined to benefit from the experience of the federations.”

The Tokyo Olympics run from July 24-Aug 9 next year where summer temperatures can soar to a sweltering 35 degrees (95F).

However, Bach added that Tokyo has already revealed “sophisticated” measures to prevent the dangers of heat, even testing in early September a system to drop artificial snow onto fans.

“I have never seen a city so well prepared one year out from the Olympics,” said the IOC chief.

In Doha, the women’s marathon last weekend saw 28 of the 68-strong field fall by the wayside as the sauna-like conditions decimated the field despite the race starting at around midnight local time.