Foreign Affairs

Heat Wave In Japan Causing Fear For 2020 Olympics

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Japan’s heat wave is causing fear for the 2020 Olympics after record-breaking temperatures reached 106 degrees in Tokyo on Monday.

The hot temperatures in Japan are impacting scheduled events for the 2020 Olympics after dozens of people died and thousands were taken to the hospital in June and July, according to The Guardian. At least 44 people have died from the heat wave since July 9, according to CNN. The International Olympic Committee already agreed Wednesday to move a marathon event up to 7 a.m. in order to combat the hot temperatures, according to Japan Today.

Makoto Yakohari, a professor at the University of Tokyo who studies stress risks that face runners for the 2020 Olympic Marathon, agreed an earlier race is beneficial, but still raises consequences.

“However, as far as you will be having the race in Tokyo in mid-summer, none of the measures, even a pile of all measures, can ensure safety,” Yakohari told The Guardian.

“Countermeasures against heat is one of the major pillars for the success of the 2020 Olympics,” Tokyo’s governor Yuriko Koike told reporters at a press conference Monday, BBC reported. Japan has an average high temperature of 83 degrees Fahrenheit and a low of 76 degrees Fahrenheit in July, according to timeanddate.com.

Japan will host the Olympics from July 24. to Aug. 9, 2020.