US EditionGlobal Warming and Heat Stress Risk Close in on the Tour De France
A study of 50 races shows rising heat stress risks in southwestern and southeastern France, urging Tour de France changes to protect riders and spectators from extreme heat.
- On February 24, 2026, climate researchers from IRD, LSHTM and ISGlobal urged major changes to the Tour de France's timing and format to reduce rising heat stress for riders and spectators.
- Using WBGT, the study team retrieved climate data from 12 Tour de France sites for 50 editions to assess high‑risk heat episodes.
- Location analysis showed dangerous heat episodes near Nîmes and Paris, with Paris crossing high-risk thresholds five times in July; mornings remain the safest part of the day.
- Amid different federation rules, researchers said Tour teams collect physiological data and use cooling measures while Ivana Cvijanovic urged sharing anonymised rider data for heat stress study.
- With rising heat episodes, researchers urged that the Tour de France may need rescheduling, affecting other summer sporting events like the Olympic Games and Football World Cup.
18 Articles
18 Articles
The Tour de France dodges the extreme heat for now, but every July the margin is narrower. A study that analyzes half a century of climate data warns that the most famous cycling race in the world has been “extremely fortunate” by avoiding, for days or tenths of degree, scenarios of high risk to health. Global warming is steadily raising thermal stress in key cities of the route. Heat waves are more frequent, more intense and longer, and science…
The Tour de France is a fortunate and abusive race, they repeat, very envious, the organizers of other tests, who denounce that the cycling race by antonomasia has filled the month of July, the weeks in which there can be less competition from other sports; in which, above all, there is no football league, that devours everything.
Global warming and heat stress risk close in on the Tour de France
The progressive rise in temperatures poses a growing threat to the staging of summer sporting events in Europe and, more specifically, to the Tour de France, due to the increasing risk of heat stress for athletes. This is one of the conclusions of a study published in Scientific Reports, which analyzed climate data associated with more than 50 editions of the French race.
Could Tour de France stages soon be raced in the morning? Scientists warn climate change and extreme heatwaves could make afternoon racing too dangerous
While blue-skied, sun-drenched, sunflower-packed Tour de France stages may be one of the great traditions of the sporting summer, scientists have warned that global warming and extreme heatwaves may soon make many July afternoons too hot for racing at the world’s most famous bike race.Instead, researchers from the Barcelona Institute for Global Health have advised ...
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