As the world looks to Paris for this year’s Olympics, it’s crucial to reflect on a pressing issue that threatens our global community: climate change.
The games, set against the backdrop of a city where average temperatures have risen by 3.1°C since the 1924 Olympics, serve as a stark reminder of the urgent need to address the climate crisis.
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The threat to the Paris Agreement
The Paris Agreement's goal of limiting temperature rise to 1.5°C is under serious threat.
In 2015, nations united under this agreement with the world’s governments committing to addressing climate change. And yet temperatures have exceeded this critical threshold for 12 consecutive months.
We are perilously close to missing this goal unless immediate and substantial actions are taken.
The last time representatives from every nation descended on Paris was the UN climate summit in 2015 where the Paris Agreement was signed. It’s terrible that just nine years later that agreement is under serious threat with both carbon emissions and global temperatures continuing to rise.
The devastating impact of climate change
Since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, we have witnessed a slew of devastating climate events: deadly heatwaves in India and Saudi Arabia, unprecedented temperature records in Canada, wildfires ravaging Southern Europe, floods in the UAE and severe droughts in China and East Africa.
The financial toll of extreme weather since COP28 in December last year has surpassed $41 billion in damages.
This is an issue of life and death, people are dying, they are losing their homes and their livelihoods. It needs to be a wake-up call for the rich, polluting nations to make climate action a national priority and urgently move away from fossil fuels which are driving this climate catastrophe.
In a 2023 report, we highlight the dire impact of climate change on Pacific rugby-playing nations such as Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga, where rising sea levels threaten the very existence of low-lying islands.
Julie Duffus, Senior Manager of Sustainability at the International Olympic Committee, echoed these concerns at the Sport Positive Summit in October 2022, predicting that by 2030, about 20% of Olympic nations could be lost due to climate impacts.
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Climate change is impacting the world of sport
The sporting world has not been immune to these changes. The Tokyo Olympics, in 2021, were the hottest in history, with temperatures soaring above 34°C and humidity nearing 70%, posing severe health risks to athletes.
A recent report reveals that average temperatures in Paris during the 2024 Olympics will have risen by 3.1°C since 1924.
Etienne Stott, Team GB's canoe slalom gold medallist from the London 2012 Olympics, poignantly remarked on the shared responsibility we have in addressing climate change:
The Olympics is one of the few times the whole world comes together. It’s a useful reminder that we all share this precious, common home. But shamefully we are doing a terrible job at looking after it and millions of the most vulnerable people in the world are having to live with the consequences.
World leaders must do more
The Paris Olympics not only celebrate athletic achievement but also bring a spotlight to the urgent need for global climate action.
The actions (or inactions) of world leaders today will determine the future of our planet. Immediate steps are needed. With all eyes on Paris, we must focus on every world record being broken.
As we celebrate the spirit of global unity during the Olympics, let us also demand that our leaders take the bold actions required to address the climate crisis.
