Havenga, HennoJordaan, EsmeGharbi, Dorra2024-11-112024-11-112024Havenga, H., Gharbi, D., Sewry, N., Language, B., Neumann, F.H., Finch, J.M., Hill, T., Boulter, J., Jordaan, E., Piketh, S.J. and Schwellnus, M., 2024. Healthy environments for athleTes (HEAT): environmental conditions along a 90 km ultra-marathon event, South Africa. International Journal of Biometeorology, pp.1-15.https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-024-02703-8https://hdl.handle.net/10566/19632This paper provides an overview of the HEAT (Healthy Environments for AthleTes) project, which aims to understand the impact of environmental conditions on athlete health and performance during major sporting events such as long-distance running, cycling, and triathlons. In collaboration with the SAFER (Strategies to reduce Adverse medical events For the ExerciseR) initiative, the HEAT project carried out a field campaign at the 2022 Comrades Marathon in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. The measurement campaign deployed seven weather stations, seven PM2.5 monitors and one spore trap along the 90 km route to capture spatially representative measurements of complex micro-climates, allergenic aerospora, and particulate matter exposure. The results indicate that runners were exposed to moderate risk heat stress conditions.enEndurance eventsClimate changeHeat stressAerosporaEnvironmental impacts on AthletesArticle