Climate warming should be a major priority, Olympians call for presidential hopes of MOO

The Canadian freestyle philippe marquis skier always felt at home in the mountains, and his playground of the snow beauty postcard.

But the double Olympian watched that the place he loved the most to change during his time in sports, all because of the warming climate. Less than a decade ago, he would train in the summer months at the Horstman glacier in Whistler. No more. Glacier was closed last year for summer skiing and snowboarding due to lack of snow.

Now the free ski coach of Canada’s Nextgen program in the trailers, Marquis said that athletes were forced to rely on the snow created by a man, who is more firm and clearer than natural powder and can be heavy on the bodies of athletes. The schedule was thrown into a blender change related to weather conditions, but Tim Marquis said that the costs for the competition had increased.

“Seeing changes around the world is something I am very afraid of and this is something that really affects me and the sport that I really love,” said Marquis, who chaired the commission of the athlete of the Canadian Olympic Committee in an interview with CBC Sports.

He is one of more than 400 athletes around the world who have signed a letter to candidates who are struggling to become the new president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), urging them to climate the number one priority.

MOO members from all over the world will gather in Greece next week at a MOO session, where he will choose a new president among seven candidates. Candidates made their case privately to members at an event of closed doors in Switzerland In January, with only 15 minutes, to single out his vision.

Some climate emphasized more than others on their public platforms: Johan Eliasch, president of the International Ski Federation, described climate change as a “existential threat” to the Winter Olympics and rotated these games between permanent places as a sustainable option.

Meanwhile, world athletics president Sebastian Coe, one of the front runners, points to the challenge of climate change on his platform and promises to “incorporate ambitious environmental goals in each aspect of the Games, the placement of new standards for sustainability and green innovation in sports,” but does not explain those goals or how to achieve them. Coe said climate change can eventually force Summer Olympic Games to the Winter Calendar.

The winner will replace Thomas Bach, who has been governing the largest sports organization in the world since 2013, and will officially take over in June.

This person will have the task of leading the Olympic Games through the world after the pandemic, moving in the challenges in the range of war and political instability to sports integrity and safety of athletes.

They will also be the task of the games to be relevant among the younger generation that consumes the media in a much different way than their parents and grandparents.

“[We need] The leader who understands and embodies the positive values ​​of the sport, is advocating for integrity, good management and sustainability, financial and environmental ecological, while improving the safe and involvement of the sports environment around the world, “the President of the Canadian Olympic Committee of Tricia Smith, who is a member of IOC to vote at the election, said in a written sport.

‘No longer a distant threat’

But no challenge can be bigger than the planet warming and the extreme time coming with it, athletes who have signed a letter to the MOO candidates. Extreme Heat makes it difficult to plan for summer games, while less space is able to host winter games, due to lack of snow and ice melting.

“This is no longer a distant threat, but the current and growing damage to the sport we love and the countries that make up our Olympic family,” the letter said.

Athletes invite to meet with the new president and that the person strengthens the moo obligation to “quickly reduce carbon emissions”. They also invite the power to “set up the standard” when it comes to “sponsorship with great pollution”.

The letter includes signatures of more than 125 bearers of Olympic flags and more than 20 Canadians.

These include athletes who won medals in Paris last year, such as rower Katie Vincent, volleyball player Melissa Human-Paredes, tennis player Gabriela Dabrowski and weight lift Maude Charron, who was one of the Canadian Bers of Flags on the Ceremonini opening in Paris 2024.

About a month ago, Vincent went to the training camp just in front of San Diego. Her group was forced to find somewhere else for training a few days when the algae flowering closed the lake they were supposed to use.

“They believe that because of the chemicals they entered the ground because of the fight [Los Angeles] The fires that went through the ground and eventually infected the lake, “said Vincent, who became an Olympic champion in Sprint Canuea last summer in Paris.

The three -time Olympic medal has also experienced heating temperatures during its career, perhaps the most prominent during the extreme heat of the Olympic Games in Tokyo. It was some of the hottest weather athletes, Vincent said.

Risk of fire in focus for LA 2028

IOC vowed to reduce its direct and indirect carbon emissions by 50 percent by 2030, aligning with the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

In Paris, the organizers decided to focus on temporary or existing infrastructure to avoid generating emissions that come with the construction of new facilities. The organizers said the 2024 summer games reduced the games of the Games by more than 54 percent compared to the London average in 2012 and Rio in 2016.

But Los Angeles is in the spotlight in 2028, and wild fire risks everyone after the toll of devastating flames last fall, in which they killed almost 30 people and destroyed thousands of homes and other buildings.

Vincent said it was a reminder of liability to ensure environmental protection, which is why he wants to make sure he is at the top of the MOO priority list.

“It felt like the right time to add our name to that list and help continue this conversation with IOC.”