Paris Olympics 2024: Ice vests come to sailors' rescue amid searing temperatures

The sailing events in the Paris Olympics 2024 got underway on 28 July and the rising temperatures have forced the athletes to already look for solutions to keep their bodies in check. Sailing is a difficult sport where you to have to constantly navigate strong winds and the current, but with the temperatures in Marseille touching 30 degrees Celsius, sailors have been forced to use ice vests.

The sailing competition in the Paris Olympics is taking place in the Mediterranean Sea with Roucas-Blanc Marina in Marseille serving as the point of departure for the boats. A total of 330 athletes will compete across ten sailing competitions over 12 days in Marseille.

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What is an ice vest?

With the scorching sun and rising temperatures in Marseille, the Paris Olympics athletes are opting for ice vests to keep themselves cool. An ice vest is a wearable cooling contraption. They look like sleeveless jackets but are made of wetsuit materials and on the inside, they have inserts where ice packs can be added. This way you can have ice packs closer to your body at the back and in front, helping you stay cool.

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“The heat is really bad and at least this is cooling me down,” Sara Tkadlecova, Czech women’s skiff crew, told Reuters about the ice vest she was wearing.

Kaj Bocker, the coach of the Dutch women’s skiff, shared how their vest works. The ice vests have four compartments in which four ice packs can be inserted and it will help in cooling for hours.

“We filled them up this morning with ice and they did their job, said Bocker.

However, the ice packs have also added to the logistical work of athletes and teams who have to carry extra stuff and also worry about them leaking or melting.

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That, however, is not a problem for sailors from Asia who are accustomed to the heat and humidity.

“A couple of the athletes are struggling with it, but this is okay for us,” Ameena Shah, Kuwait’s single-handed women’s sailor, said.

“We don’t really have them back in the Gulf … despite the heat and the humidity,” Shah added.

For her towels soaked in cold water is enough.