doha diary
Ò To have Qatar-based research assume importance all over the world will be a credit to Aspetar and also to Doctors Nybo and RacinaisÓ Dr Lars Nybo of Denmark, and his French acolyte Dr Sebastien Racinais
being analysed] we hope to have learned three main things. “One, how is performance affected by climate? We know what a hot environment does to the body, there’s already plenty of data available. We don’t know about the specific effect on footballers though, how they will be able to maintain short sprints over long periods of time. How will football coaches have to adapt their tactics around changes in performance levels of their players? “Two, the health and safety aspects. Is it harmful for a player to play in a hot environment? A player could play in a cooled stadium [cooling technology is a cornerstone of the Qatar 2022 World Cup bid] but what of the other 22 hours of the day which will be in a hot environment? In this climate, the main factor which affects body temperature is exercise so we need to know the safety aspects of a rise in body temperature in a climate where, outdoors in summer, it is not possible to cool down without outside ‘help’. “Three, recovery of the body from
stresses placed on it by exercise in this environment. Is it the case that while a footballer could play a game every couple of days in a European climate, they would not be able to do so to the same standard here without a longer rest periods between matches? This also includes the process of acclimation – how long does
arid environment to perform to a professional physical standard, Racinais agrees – but only to an extent. He says, “I can tell you that I have worked with people from tropical islands [Racinais achieved his PhD in the French West Indies] in similarly challenging climates but total acclimation is impossible.
Ò I can tell you that I have worked with people from tropical islands in similarly challenging climates but total acclimation is impossibleÓ it take for the human body to get used to this environment, how many days, what needs to be done?” When it is proposed that people native to the region (Arab) or those from warmer climes (black African) would have a physiological advantage over, say, a white European in acclimating sufficiently to an
“From a health point of view, overall athletic performance will decrease in this climate.” The test subjects for this study are a group of Northern European footballers from Denmark and the Faroe Islands (see over). The athleticism of the individuals and their being used to a cool climate November 10
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11/1/10 7:53:04 PM