Cyclists Wilt As Beijing Competitors Feel The Heat

[hatrack]

Source: Straits Times

BEIJING - A THIRD of the riders in Saturday's Olympic men's cycling road race did not finish and tennis officials said they were considering allowing heat breaks as Beijing's stifling humidity took a punishing toll on athletes.

Temperatures into the high 90s Fahrenheit (above 35 Celsius), suffocating humidity and murky haze have combined to produce what competitors from several sports says are the most difficult conditions they have faced.

EDIT

'I had a terrible headache. I don't know where it came from. Probably the pollution,' said Germany's Schumacher, who showed impressive form on the Tour last month, winning two time-trials.

'It feels like you're at 3,000 metres because of the air. You cannot breathe. The air is thick and there is smog.'

Read more: http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Sport/Story/STIStory_266368.html

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One-third of these world-class cyclists couldn't finish the race - heat AND filthy air.

[mdmc]

1. this is the first I've heard about it

[geomon666]

2. They better be careful.

These guys could easily drop dead out there from dehydration and heat stroke.

[BrklynLiberal]

3. I believe it was Jay Leno who said they were training by riding right behind buses.

[Codeine]

4. But look! Look at the beautiful dancers! What a spectacle!

Ridiculous.

[jeff30997]

5. The Chinese Governmwent...

Can kiss my hairy ass!

[alphafemale]

6. Summer Olympics should be held in cooler climates.

period

[Codeine]

7. I don't know about that.

Heat's not that big an issue unless combined with humidity, then the natural cooling mechanism, which is usually supremely developed in an athlete, has difficulty functioning. Dry heat is usually fine.

I do think they should be held in places where the air isn't so thick with particulate matter that children use it as modeling clay.

[natrat]

9. it's a shit place that doesn't care about pollution or how much exposure people have

[AngryAmish]

20. Maybe hold it during a cooler time of year, like February

[a la izquierda]

8. Horrible conditions

my husband trains in Oklahoma in the summer, in frequently 100+ degree heat. Granted, he's not a world-class athlete, but he can ride for hours in the middle of the day and go about the rest of his business. These guys competed in the Tour de France in hot conditions, at altitude and weren't experiencing the fatigue seen here.
What a disgrace. I'd read about the problems many cyclists had when testing the course months ago and sort of figured this would happen.

[Critters2]

15. Amd thousands of people ride RAGBRAI every summer,

many of them not really athletes at all except for that...in the heat and humidity of Iowa in late July. Sure, some drop out. But most can make it.

And these are world-class athletes. The pollution has to be playing a role.

[C_U_L8R]

10. I was in Shanghai and the pollution was disgusting

you literally could not go outside it was so thickly and noxiously polluted.
It was horrifying.

[ellie]

11. I am wondering

how the marathoners are going to fare in the pollution.

[Codeine]

12. With luck,

an overnight rain and the lack of traffic will clear things up enough that nobody gets hurt.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

13. Still, it was an exciting race with a white-knuckle finish

:7

[Angleae]

14. Wait until the marathons, then you will see people drop.

[malletgirl02]

16. Chosing cities

When choosing cities to host the Olympics, air quality should be a key factor. Beijing's poor air quality was one of the many reasons I don't think China should not have gotten the Olympics.

[Neshanic]

17. Did you see those spray devices they set up? That was wild.

[Javaman]

18. high heat and pollution is a deadly combination

but according to all the photos we have been getting out of china, it's been nothing but clear blue skies!!!

:banghead:

[aikoaiko]

19. The most competitive finished.

[XOKCowboy]

21. I was there June '07 and the humidity was stifling

I always thought Orlando and Houston were muggy but nothing like it was in Beijing. This was also before the pre-Olympic air cleanup campaign and most days you couldn't see more than a half mile thanks to the smog. They were building the Birds Nest and all of the Olympic Village buildings (we were told that over a million workers had been brought from all over the country for the construction) which also added tons of dust to the atmosphere. It was nasty. Luckily I was working during the day in a luxury hotel (OMG I DO mean luxury too!) with great air conditioning. At night when we'd usually walk to dinner, within a block we'd all be sweating profusely.

We all remarked at the time that we couldn't fathom doing any outside activity in August in Beijing, much less Olympic class athletics. Looks like we were right.