Paris Announced It Would Not Have Air Conditioning in the Olympic Village: How Team USA Responded
Team USA is going the extra mile to provide air conditioning at the Olympic Games
While many athletes and viewers are gearing up for the Olympic Games in Paris with feverish anticipation, some have heat on the mind. The Olympic Village – home to the athletes from July 26 to August 11 – will not be equipped with air conditioning, and Team USA has had a unique response to the AC problem. Keep scrolling to find out what the Americans will be doing to keep themselves cool while competing.
Why is there no air conditioning in the Olympic Village?
The idea to ditch the air conditioning came from the city’s efforts to make the Games as eco-friendly as possible. However, planners did make it clear that they would have “innovative, eco-focused cooling solutions” in the rooms that will “minimize carbon emissions and keep temperatures at comfortable levels in the rooms.”
Yann Krysinski , who’s responsible for infrastructure at Paris 2024, added, “We don’t need air conditioning in these buildings because we oriented the facades so that they wouldn’t get too much sun during the summer, and the facades, the insulation is really efficient.”
He concluded that the rooms will use “naturally cool water that we’re getting from underground to cool the air of these apartments.”
Concern over the lack of air conditioning at the Paris Olympic Games
As mentioned above, the Summer Olympics will take place at the end of July in Paris. During that time, the city can get up to 104°F (40°C), which experts have warned could be the hottest Olympic Games in history. They also confirmed that the average temperatures have increased by approximately 5.5°F (-14.7222°C) since the last time Paris hosted the Olympics.
How did Team USA respond to the Summer Olympics air conditioning news?
It’s no secret that the USA loves its air conditioning, and so it’s safe to say that the Olympic team didn’t take the news well and announced that they would be bringing their own air conditioning units to the Paris Olympic Village.
“As you can imagine, this is a period of time in which consistency and predictability is critical for Team USA’s performance,” Sarah Hirshland, CEO of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) said in a press conference. “In our conversations with athletes, this was a very high priority and something that the athletes felt was a critical component in their performance capability and the predictability and consistency of what they’re accustomed to.”
According to The Washington Post, other teams such as Australia, Canada, Denmark, Great Britain, Greece and Italy will also bring their own air conditioning units as well.
“We will bring them. And we will take them back to Greece,” said Alexandra Palli, president of the Greek Olympic Committee for environmental sustainability, who said her country was responding to the wishes of its athletes. “They need support. Because what they do is very difficult anyway.”
Related: Ralph Lauren Debuts Their Summer 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony Uniforms: See Photo Announcement
How Americans responded to the Paris Olympics air conditioning news
In true American fashion, people all across the country took to X (formerly Twitter) to voice their support for the Olympic team bringing their own air conditioning.
“I’m…not mad about this. Air conditioning is like water, oxygen, food,” one user wrote.
Another decided to compare it to Shakespeare, writing, “Americans and their ACs is a better love story than Romeo and Juliet.”
Others decided to voice their support with images instead. Some graphics of note include various artificial intelligence images of a bald eagle and an air conditioning box.
Last but not least, one person decided to add an air conditioning box to a photo of George Washington, the first president of the United States.
For all things Summer Olympics, click here!
