Paris 2024's Olympic Village Faces Heatwave Challenge

The Paris 2024 Olympic Village, designed with innovative self-cooling apartments to minimize environmental impact, faces a heatwave challenge. Delegations are turning to air conditioning units due to extreme temperatures. The financial disparity among nations affects their ability to provide adequate cooling for athletes, impacting performance.

The Paris 2024 organisers had anticipated their self-cooling Olympic Village apartments would eliminate the need for air conditioning, positioning these Games as the greenest in history.

However, with temperatures soaring in the French capital, many delegations are taking no risks. A heatwave has driven Paris temperatures into the mid-30s degrees Celsius, prompting a rush for air conditioning units in the Olympic Village. Wealthier countries are better equipped to provide AC for their athletes, while poorer nations struggle to offer the same relief.

Louis Garrard, an accountant for OCOG, is part of the team supplying AC units. "We ran out at some point, but our stocks are back up," he said, noting high demand, especially from Asian countries. Organisers planned to reduce the Games' carbon footprint by using a water-cooling system and other measures, but extreme heat has led to granting permission for delegations to buy or rent AC units.

(With inputs from agencies.)