While we have no formal policy for hot weather, we recommend that caution be taken when training or competing in hot weather. Ongoing hydration, training in early morning or later evening, or moving training indoors are obvious recommendations.
For a competition, the appropriate officials(s) and the meet director are tasked with making decisions regarding said competition.
Considerations that may go into such a decision (and could be applied to practices):
– The ability for individuals to thermoregulate as a determinant of the level of risk
– Is there a breeze (or is it still air), is there shade, is there a hydration area, what time of day is the competition, how long is there between events, what type of events are being run (e.g. speed/power vs endurance), etc.
– Officials (how many are there, what is the rotation through the day, shade, hydration, rest breaks, etc) – [can apply to coaches / volunteers]
Stay safe out there. When in doubt, check Environment Canada’s website. If they say the air quality is too poor to be outside, then so do we. If they say to stay indoors due to extreme heat, then so do we.
