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Antonio Christopher

Mr. Smith

AWR 201

18 November 2020

Climate Change and Sports

It is no secret that our Earth’s climate has changed from generation to generation. This

type of pattern can be seen to repeat itself throughout history. The modern climate era began

with the end of the last ice age which took place about 11,700 years ago. From this point on, the

increased use of fossil fuels by humans has increased the levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide in

our air. This is the leading reason to the drastic climate change seen within our world throughout

history. Climate change is a global issue and the evidence of it today is quite compelling. Today

we can see a global temperature rise, warming oceans, shrinking ice sheets, decreased snow

cover, sea level rise, declining artic sea ice, and other extreme events. All of which directly

impact the world of sports because there are no sports without a clean, healthy planet. As

temperatures rise, due to climate change, the consequences on sports also rise. According to

news reporting out of Minneapolis, by Vertical News editors, research stated, "Climate change

presents a significant and growing challenge to the sport industry, especially outdoor and winter

sports.” Some of the outdoor/winter sports affected by climate change include skiing, ice hockey,

the Olympics, tennis, football, and golf. Scientists of the past have already predicted results of

climate change that we can see today. It is only a matter of time before these results negatively

affect the future of sports.

To better understand this argument, one must look at the cause of climate change.

Scientists believe that the leading cause of this trend comes from human activities that are
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changing the state of our natural atmosphere. This is called the “greenhouse effect”. The burning

of certain fossil fuels like oil and coal have led to the increase of carbon dioxide within our

atmosphere which also results in the trapping of the sun’s warmth to be trapped in our planet’s

lower atmosphere. This change in our atmosphere comes with many negative consequences for

our environment. Our earth will become warmer which will also lead to more precipitation and

evaporation overall. On top of this, ocean’s will also be warmed resulting in melted ice sheets

and glaciers. Both of which will result in the sea level to rise due to the fact that water expands

when it warms. Crops are also being destroyed as the carbon dioxide within the atmosphere has

the ability to significantly reduce the nutritional value of some food in the growing stage. Daily

human activities are destroying our environment in more ways than some may think.

Today, scientists are confident that temperatures will continue to rise at a rapid rate for

many decades to come. This is due to greenhouse gases produced by human activities. The

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicts a temperature rise of 2.5 to 10 degrees

Fahrenheit over the next century. As temperature rise, hot days make it tougher to compete

outdoors and cooler nights reduce the speed of recovery. High temperatures put more strain on

the human body meaning it is easier to overheat and encourage injury. Athletes today are aware

of the connection between the conditions they perform in and their health. This has caused many

professional athletes to speak out about climate change and their desire to make a difference.

Odell Beckham Jr., a wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns, said, “We give everything to be a

part of this sport. We have to adapt and think differently about our approach to playing if climate

change continues down this path. We can’t take our environment for granted.” (Nike) This level

of concern can also be seen by Chloe Kim, an American snowboarder. She said, “I always

thought there’d be plenty of snow in the mountains. We all have to do our part on climate change
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to protect the future of snowboarding and, more importantly, our planet.” (Nike) Both of these

accomplished athletes understand the severity of the future and that we have to rapidly change

our path.

To begin with, climate change has already directly impacted the game of football. The

rise in temperature also results in increased amounts of humidity. Both of which have limited

how often football players are allowed to be on the field and compete. Football players wear

more equipment then athletes in other sports like baseball, basketball, soccer and running.

Wearing more equipment makes it harder for the body to maintain a safe core temperature. In

2001, Korey Stringer, an offensive lineman for the Minnesota Vikings, passed away from an

exertional heat stroke during training camp. His sudden death sparked concerns throughout the

sport and lead to the creation of the Korey Stringer Institute. This institution is dedicated to

research aimed at heat stress within the sport and preventing situations like this from occurring

again. Throughout the years, a numerous amounts of US states have changed rules and

regulations that requires teams to monitor conditions while competing. They are asked to take

into account humidity, air temperature, wind speed, cloud coverage and sun angle on the athletes.

When all these factors are taken into consideration, teams will then know if equipment needs to

be shed or if practice needs to be shortened or canceled. This can be seen in the National

Football League when the league is forced to rearrange schedules and game times due to extreme

conditions. This can also be seen after Hurricane Katrina hit, the New Orleans Saints were forced

to move home games to different stadiums in Texas, New Jersey, and Louisiana.
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- New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina struck and ruined their environment.

Along with football, the Winter Olympics have also been affected by climate change.

This can be seen in the declining number of host cities available for the global event. If the

current pace of greenhouse gas emissions is not reduced, only eight of the previous 21 hosts will

be cold enough to host the Winter Olympics by the end of the century. During the 2014 Winter

Olympics, the temperature in Sochi, Russia reached 61 degrees Fahrenheit despite the average

temperature being 50 degrees in February. These conditions were not ideal for the snow and

caused delays, injuries, and complaints from many athletes. Climate change has increased the

average surface temperature around the world which has resulted in shortened winter seasons.

Not only has climate change made it harder for athletes to compete in the Winter Olympics, but

it has also increased the difficulty of training for them as well. Athletes must now travel further

and more often to find places that have enough snow and ice for them to train. This can be seen
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as glaciers in both Australia and Canada have begun to deteriorate. In search for practice space,

the constant travel of these athletes creates more harm than good as it leads to more carbon

emissions into our air.

Furthermore, extreme heat is a major health problem which could lead to muscle

cramps, profuse sweat, thirst, and fatigue. Air quality is just as harmful as extreme heat. Athletes

who train in smoke and poor air quality are considered more vulnerable to troubled breathing.

Air pollution has the ability to decrease lung function and reduce blood flow which is extremely

dangerous for athletes. In the past, athletic events have been canceled or postponed due to poor

air quality. This can be seen in 2018 when the Berkley Half Marathon was canceled due to a

wildfire smoke that created unhealthy air pollution. More recently, the Swan Lake Fire of 2019

caused officials of the Mount Marathon Race to cancel the junior race. In doing so, they offered

the athletes spots in next year’s race with hopes of a safer environment to compete in. Not only

has poor air quality affected running, it has also affected the game of tennis. This year’s

Australian Open was affected by fires throughout the land. These fires created smoke and poor

air quality that left athletes experiencing coughing fits which lead to them forfeiting. Many of the

athletes at the event were experiencing asthma attacks and symptoms despite not normally

having it.
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- Australian Open pictured with smoke, poor air quality.

As sea levels continue to rise, so do concerns for certain sports and sports teams. Teams

and facilities on the coasts of our country will have to deal with this more then anyone else.

Many of our country’s favorite sports are played near the water whether that’s in California,

Florida, New York, or New Jersey. If sea levels continue to rise at a rapid rate, many sports

facilities will likely experience flooding. Some of these facilities consist of Citi Field in New

York, Petco Park in San Diego, MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, and Oracle Park in San

Francisco. This type of situation can already be seen in the sports world today, just take a look at

the home of the Oakland Athletics. RingCentral Coliseum has been the home of A’s since 1966

but the playing surface is 22 feet below sea level. This results in constant flooding on the field

and dugouts leaving workers to constantly pump the field dry. The Oakland Athletics are the last

professional sports team to call Oakland home as both the Raiders and Warriors have relocated

to escape the conditions created by sea level rise. However, no other coastal area is more subject

to sea level rise than Florida. The sports industry in Florida brings in about $57.5 billion a year

along with fielding over 575,000 jobs within the industry. This could all be in jeopardy and
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washed away in years to come. Thus, leaving the sport industry in Florida washed up and

waterlogged for the foreseeable future.

Recently, Nike has launched a new company policy called Move to Zero. In doing so,

Nike is aiming to move towards zero carbon and zero waste throughout production. There main

goal in doing so is to help protect the future of sports by trying to protect our planet. Nike created

Move to Zero as a result of athletes today experiencing increased heat waves and shorter winter

seasons. This new policy commits to eliminating all single-use plastic in all of Nike’s campuses

throughout the world. Since 2010, these efforts have quietly removed 6.4 billion plastic bottles

from landfills. On top of this, Nike also uses landfills to create 99 percent of their shoe

manufacturing. Move to Zero has been quite successful since Nike first launched this campaign

and is only positioned to become more effective in the near future. By 2025, Nike wants to

power all of their facilities with renewable energy. On top of this, Nike plans to cut carbon

emissions throughout its global supply chain by up to 30 percent by 2030. Nike has realized the

reality of climate change in our world today and is doing everything in their power to help

protect the future of sports as we know of it today.

Climate change imposes many risks for sport organizations just like the athletes

competing. Location of these organizations will depend on the severity of their risks. The risks of

climate change create a state of vulnerability that these sports organizations have to face. Some

of these consequences result in lowered revenues, destruction of facilities, and events being

delayed or canceled. These are all things organizations have to consider and put into perspective

while getting effected by climate change. Thus, putting these organizations in tough situations to

make decisions while adapting to climate change. Organizations today have already had to make

these tough calls as the 2017 Cycle Oregon was canceled due to forest fires that destroyed parts
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of California, Oregon, and Washington State. This situation can also be seen in Major League

Baseball and the National Football League as Hurricane Harvey led to the cancelation of many

games within the two sports. Sport organizations, as well as their communities, face both social

and economic consequences with each and every cancellation. On top of this, organizations are

accountable for providing a space to compete. Due to climate change, our Earth’s natural

environment is no longer a given for the use of sports. This can be seen during the 2010 winter

Vancouver Olympics. In the middle of winter, the mountains in Vancouver were green as could

be with not an inch of snow in sight. This resulted in the organizers having to take snow from

nearby neighborhoods and areas just so the events, like snowboarding, could take place.

- Image of the snow during the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

The relationship between sport and our environment goes both ways. In one way, sport

organizations influence our environment through waste production and disposable. This is

something organizations have to consider because they do not want to destroy the environment
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that is making them billions of dollars. In the other way, our environment influences sports

because it provides resources and space for these events to take place as well as weather

conditions.

Not only does climate change impose many risks to sports but it also creates many issues

within the industry. These issues consist of organizational uncertainty, greater management

complexity, cost risks associated with water and energy resources, and waste outputs. Up to this

point, we have had the ability to adapt and change to climate change but as they continue to get

worse, we will no longer have this flexibility. While most of the physical impacts of climate

change are manageable, the economic impacts are not always as easy to come back from.

Climate change has the ability to destroy a sports economy resulting in the derailing of sports as

we know it today. Sport organizations now and of the future will have to manage their defensives

against climate change to not only protect their teams but also their money.

At a microscopic level, sports have the ability to create and bring together a community.

Community sports have the ability to bring neighbors and families closer together. This allows

families to have a great sense of belonging to one’s community. Sports also have the ability to

provide a common ground within a community. Within a sport, individuals have the ability to

become positive role models for a team and society. Not only do these individuals bring the

community closer but also gives the community hope. All of which allows a community to

become closer. A strong and tight community has the ability to overcome obstacles. This can be

seen in the article “Forged in Fire” by Naomi Klein. Throughout the article, Naomi shares how a

large California community helps support a smaller community after fires completely wiped

them away. The surrounding community provided shelter, food, and other support throughout the

rebuilding process of the affected community. Furthermore, this type of support can be seen
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within the sports community when Hurricane Katrina destroyed the whole city of New Orleans.

After the natural disaster, the community railed around the New Orleans Saints in an attempt to

rebuild its city which ended up leading to a Super Bowl win in 2010. Similarly, to natural

disasters, sports allow communities to show their support for one another while also figuring out

ways to overcome obstacles both on and off the field.

All in all, the world highly depends on the financial income of sports and the comfort

provided when partaking in them. Without sports, the world would be a much different place. If

the human race does not act fast, it is likely that the sports that we know and love will no longer

exist. Society has already seen drastic changes throughout the years that have negatively

impacted the way sports are conducted and the areas they take place in. With the rates that

climate change has been increasing, and the lack of effort to make a change, the sports industry

is going to have a difficult future. Together as a race, we need to put in the time and effort to

ensure that we do not seal our upcoming fate and make a difference that will benefit us all.
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Works Cited

Climate Nexus. Climate Change and Sports.13 Nov. 2019. https://climatenexus.org/climate-

issues/climate-change-and-sports/

Dingle, Greg, and Bob Stewart. “Playing the climate game: climate change impacts, resilience

and adaptation in the climate-dependent sport sector.” Managing Sport and Leisure, vol.

23, no 4-6, Sep. 2018, pp. 293-314.

https://www-tandfonline-com.esearch.ut.edu/doi/full/10.1080/23750472.2018.1527715.

Accessed 30 Oct. 2020.

Klein, Naomi. Forged in Fire: California’s Lessons for a Green New Deal. The Intercept. 2019.

https://theintercept.com/2019/11/07/california-wildfires-green-new-deal/

Nike. Climate and Sport. Rhodium Group. 2019. https://purpose.nike.com/climate-and-sport/#

National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The Effects of Climate Change. 21 Aug. 2020.

https://climate.nasa.gov/effects/

Orr, Madeline, and Yuhei Inoue. “Sport versus climate: Introducing the climate vulnerability of

sport organizations framework.” Sport Management Review, vol. 22, no. 4, Aug. 2019,

pp. 452-463.

https://www-sciencedirect-com.esearch.ut.edu/science/article/pii/S1441352318302304?

via%3Dihub#. Accessed 25 Oct. 2020.

The Climate Reality Project. How the climate crisis threatens the future of sports. Climate

Reality. 2020. https://climaterealityproject.org/blog/how-climate-crisis-threatens-future-

sports
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“Typhoon Hagibis offers a glimpse of sport's stormy future; Climate change stops play.” The

Economist, 14 Oct. 2019. https://bi-gale-com.esearch.ut.edu/global/article/GALE

%7CA624583241?u=tamp73569&sid=summon. Accessed 25 Oct. 2020.