Copa América: United States will break climate record and high temperatures worry Conmebol

The Copa América is about to start. The teams are preparing and Conmebol begins to announce the last details so that the tournament develops in the best way for teams and fans.

This edition will take place in the United States during the summer. This will cause temperatures and weather to rise to an extent that could be detrimental to the health of players.

For this reason, the organization launched a protocol in case there are heat strokes in the players due to the effort they make between the game and the impact that the weather represents.

America’s harsh summer.

”These temperatures that the ocean is registering are truly unprecedented, they are records and they are giving a lot of energy to the system, which means that a summer with high temperatures is expected,” said Martínez.
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In addition, he explained that heat waves occur due to the accumulation of thermal energy during the day. That is, if normally the heat of the day dissipates at night when the minimum temperature decreases, with heat waves it does not decrease, but rather accumulates.

For Joanne Pérodin, General Director of Climate Equity at The Cleopatra Institute, in an interview with the aforementioned portal, heat waves are increasing the temperature and their duration, in addition to blocking precipitation in the affected populations.

Conmebol’s measures to protect footballers

Due to the aggressive heat waves that are expected in the United States for the reasons explained, the organization has made the decision to launch medical recommendations that ensure the safety and health of the soccer players.

This is focused on cases in which there is heat stroke due to exertion. For Conmebol, the issue of global warming and the effects it could cause is critical and that is why they pay so much attention to it.

Exertional heat stroke (or GCE, as Conmebol calls it) has been related to many long-term health problems in athletes, such as edema and permanent brain damage, and has even been a cause of sudden death in the field of sports. game. This occurs when the body cannot regulate temperature due to extreme humidity and, therefore, causes decompensations and irregularities in the body’s hydration systems.

The confederation launched preventive measures that must be followed in the event of extreme temperatures and also emergency responses in case of problems with the heat.

To prepare for high heat, the organization recommends training of medical personnel to act in the event of GCE, in addition to medical examinations to identify which athletes could be at risk of suffering an incident of this type.
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​In addition, the recommendations include adaptation for 14 days and education that allows the athletes themselves to identify the cases and know what to do. Among others, they recommend optimal hydration, hours of sleep and nutrition.

Response to a possible emergency

In case of excessive heat, Conmebol issued guidelines for the treatment of 4 possible situations: Cramps, Syncope, Exhaustion and Heat Stroke. The measures that will be taken, according to Conmebol, will be the following:

The Copa América will begin on June 20 at the Mercedes Benz Stadium with the duel between Argentina and Canada. Colombia will play its first match against Paraguay on June 24 in Houston, Texas, where temperatures rise to more than 30 degrees.

SPORTS.