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Science Global Warming & Climate Change

Warming Up

How Climate Change is Changing Sport

by (author) Madeleine Orr

Publisher
Bloomsbury
Initial publish date
May 2024
Category
Global Warming & Climate Change
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781399404525
    Publish Date
    May 2024
    List Price
    $37

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Description

The world of sport has a new opponent: climate change.
In recent years, a world championship marathon was held at midnight to avoid the blistering sun. Professional athletes needed oxygen tanks to play during wildfire season in California. Players collapsed and play was suspended amid the heat and bushfire smoke at the Australian Tennis open. Ski resorts in the Alps have turned into ghost towns. Golf courses are sinking into the sea. And then there's the Qatar World Cup, among the greatest follies in sporting history, one that saw hundreds (perhaps thousands) of heat-induced deaths before a ball was even kicked.
The threat climate change poses to sport is clear, but with billions of participants and fans around the world who rely on the sector for entertainment, jobs, fitness and health, this is one industry we can't afford to lose. In this book, Madeleine Orr shows it doesn't have to be this way. There are ways to mitigate, and perhaps counter, even the worst elements of climate change.
A world-leading sport ecologist, Madeleine interviews athletes, coaches, politicians and thought-leaders to learn more about the inevitable consequences for this trillion-dollar industry. From the frontlines of climate change, Warming Up takes readers through a play-by-play of how global warming is already impacting sport, and how the sports world can fight back.

About the author

Contributor Notes

Madeleine Orr is a leading sport ecologist and professor at the University of Toronto. A Forbes 30 under 30 inductee, she is the founder and co-director of The Sport Ecology Group, who consult on international climate issues for sports organisations such as the Commonwealth Secretariat, the UNEP, World Athletics, Adidas, F1 teams, and the NCAA. Madeleine has worked closely with the BBC and ESPN to further public understanding of climate issues in sport.
www.madeleineorr.com
www.madeleineorr.com

Editorial Reviews

“An essential showcase of how the climate crisis has changed sport forever. Informed, unflinching and irresistible, Madeleine Orr has hit a home run.” —Kit Chapman, author of Racing Green
“Global warming's effect on sports is not the greatest consequence of this crisis--but as this account makes very clear, for those of us who've taken great pleasure in moving through this beautiful world with as much speed or grace or endurance as we can muster, it's a perfect symbol of our folly.” —Bill McKibben, author The End of Nature
“Warming Up is more than a wake-up call. It's a passionate reminder of the threat that a changing climate presents to the sports we love, and the power those sports hold to help address the problem. Orr harnesses the power of sports stories by telling them with the heart of a fan and the head of an industry-leading expert.” —Dan Murphy, ESPN