Nairobi U-20 contest to have air quality monitored by experts – Daily Nation

With the world experiencing global warming and the concomitant adverse weather conditions, the world of sports has had to adjust for the safety of sportsmen and women.

Already, anticipated high temperatures at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games has brought major concerns with the organisers forced to move the marathon races from Tokyo to the more favourable Sapporo region.

At the Doha World Championships last year, men and women’s marathon were staged under high temperatures. In fact, most of the athletics programme was staged late in the evening when the temperature was bearably lower.

Distance running great Haile Gebrselassie was quoted to have said that it was a mistake to hold the track and field world championships in Qatar and that marathon runners could have died from the heat.

To illustrate his concerns, the women’s marathon saw 28 of the 68 starters drop out of the race while 30 runners had to receive medical attention. One athlete was briefly hospitalised.

Air quality is also important. The World Athletics Under-20 Championships due on July 7 to 12 in Nairobi will be the first global track and field championships to have air quality measured and analysed.

As part of World Athletics’ continued pilot programme to measure air quality at sporting venues around the world, a Kunak air quality monitor was recently installed at Moi International Sports Centre, the venue for this year’s World Under-20 Championships.

With the support of the Local Organising Committee, World Athletics’ health and science department will collect both clinical and environmental data.

The Kenya Urban Road Authority and Nairobi City Council have also shown interest in this scientific venture.

World Athletics Health and Science Department Director Stéphane Bermon noted that they are keen to draw the attention of some of their member federations and competition organisers on the growing importance of air quality for people who exercise.

“Our pilot programme was mostly a feasibility study to better understand the possible challenges of installing and maintaining high-end air quality devices in remote places and countries,” said Bermon.

“In addition, we want to fine-tune our air quality network prior to and during World Athletics Series events.

“In Nairobi, we’ll replicate the study we conducted in Yokohama correlating air quality, performance and respiratory symptoms,” explained Bermon.

Jackson Tuwei, the chairman of the World U-20 Championships organising committee, noted that the equipment will not only help in the area of sports, but also the city of Nairobi and other Government of Kenya agencies involved in environmental issues.

“We are happy that World Athletics has installed the air quality monitor in Nairobi,” said Tuwei, who is also the Athletics Kenya President.

Michael Rabar, CEO of the World Under-20 Championships Nairobi 2020 said that the gadget will help measure and enable assessment of the air quality and be able to determine its effect on the residents of the city of Nairobi.

“It will be a great study to help sensitise all parties on the importance of clean air and be part of the event’s legacy,” said Rabar.

It is the second air quality monitor installed in Africa by World Athletics, following the installation of one in Addis Ababa at the end of 2018.

An air quality monitor was installed in Yokohama ahead of last year’s World Relays.

The data collected from there has led to a peer-reviewed scientific publication.

Air quality will be monitored at all future World Athletics Series events, including this year’s World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia and the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in Minsk.

A device will also soon be installed in Oregon ahead of next year’s World Athletics Championships.

The data collection and analysis will help event organisers to design safer timetables, while also providing insights to the ongoing research into the correlation between air quality and the performance of athletes.

World Athletics is also developing a customised service for organisers of road races, offering a portable air quality device that can be installed a couple of days before the race or fitted to a bike or electric car.

The set-up enables World Athletics to produce an air quality map while also providing race organisers with advice and recommendations on how to mitigate the air pollution risks.