The controversy against the sustainability of the Olympic Games: USA will bring its own air conditioners to Paris

Yeray Vergara

June 24, 2024

The U.S. Olympic team will supply air conditioners to its athletes at the Paris Olympics. Australia, Germany, Italy, Canada and Great Britain are also among the countries that may follow in the US footsteps and bring their own air conditioners to Paris. This is a clear violation of the organizing committee’s spirit of trying to organize sustainable Games with the lowest possible energy and carbon footprint.

US Olympic and Paralympic executive director Sarah Hirshland has commented that “in our conversations with athletes, this was a very high priority and something that athletes felt was a critical component in their ability to perform.”

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Paris 2024 organizers have pledged that Paris will be the most sustainable Games to date. Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris organizing committee, said the Games will be “historic for the climate,” with the goal of more than halving the carbon emissions emitted by London 2012 and Rio 2016.

With this measure as a goal, Olympic organizers plan to cool the rooms of the athletes’ village with a system of cooling pipes under the floors and the goal is to keep the rooms between 23 and 26 degrees.Ç

THE MAYORESS, AGAINST THIS DECISION

Although the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, is adamantly opposed to the US measure, several countries, including the United States, have made public their decision to do so out of concern for the health and performance of their athletes in possible heat waves.

The president of the Greek Olympic Committee, Spyros Capralos, told the Greek newspaper Kathimerini earlier this year that they would “spare no expense” for their athletes and planned to buy air conditioners or find a sponsor to cover their needs. Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) CEO Matt Carroll also told reporters that they “appreciate the concept of not having air conditioning because of the carbon footprint,” but will provide their delegation with air conditioning to ensure their comfort during rest periods. “This is a high-performance Games. We’re not going on a picnic,” Carroll said.