THIS week marked one month to the start of the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games in Japan and the Irish squads in show jumping and eventing were announced (see below).

Now the attention turns to getting to Tokyo safely and one of the biggest factors to deal with will be heat acclimatisation for the horses, none more so than those who have done all their preparation in the colder climates of Ireland and Britain.

Heat in Tokyo can reach 40 degrees in July and August. Air conditioned stables and an indoor exercise arena with temperature control with attempt to mitigate the accumulative heat load that the horses in Tokyo will experience.

Speaking on the Eventing Podcast, Chris Elliott, veterinary services supervisor for the Games, said that Tokyo is going to be “the most challenging climatic conditions for equestrian that any horse has ever seen.

“Even though the [cross-country] test event was a short format at lower star level, the physical intensity that those horses experienced was considerable higher than anything seen at five-star competition, with heart rates, respiratory rate and temperatures comparable to Atlanta and Athens test events,” said Elliott.

Marcus Swail is travelling to his fourth Games as Irish team vet. The last six weeks have been hectic in the lead-up to selection and now his attention turns to the horses’ final runs and getting them to quarantine in Aachen, Germany, which the first Irish horse enters on July 7th.

Active acclimatisation

In terms of getting the horses acclimatised to the heat, he said: “The horses get to Tokyo a week before their competition, which is a reasonable help, two weeks is understood to be much better, so we would be hoping for a good hot week in Aachen during the quarantine.

“The advice is to train at the hottest time of the day, but we might get 18 degrees in Ireland which is not much help. In general terms, it is extremely important that the horses are very fit. The fitter they are, the less of a draining affect the heat will have on them. There is also some evidence that doing short training sessions with a breathable rug on is helpful.”

The conditions for the horses will be top notch in Tokyo. “The horses will be collected from the airport air conditioned trucks. The stables, like in Hong Kong (Beijing), are air conditioned, and that is extremely important. If a horse is out working for an hour or two hours, that is very taxing on them, so it is important to have that [air conditioned] environment to recover in for the other 22 hours,” Swail said.

Large quantities of cold water will be available in Tokyo to cool the horses down after work, and the cooling and misting tents will provide a safe recovery area. “If a horse is working in an arena, there will be shaded areas everywhere with misting fans, which I stand in myself sometimes! When you are sitting on a horse at any given time, you are only a two-minute hack away from somewhere you can cool them down. We allow extra time for warm up so you can step in to let the horses cool off for a couple of minutes before going again.”

Swail, who has been on the road non-stop in the last few weeks, is optimistic about the Games. “Everyone you are talking to is vaccinated, and there is a sense of optimisim again. The Olympics will be interesting to see what the dynamics are like but it is the pinnacle of sport and we look forward to it.”