France Issues Weather Warning Amid Heatwave as Paris Hosts Olympic Games

France’s meteorological agency has issued a weather warning for Paris and surrounding areas as storms and temperatures as high as 35 degrees Celsius are expected on Tuesday during the ongoing Olympic Games.

The agency has placed a “yellow alert” — the second of four levels — for the capital, highlighting the heatwave affecting other Olympic venues across France. Meanwhile, an even higher orange alert remains in place for Bordeaux and Lyon, where temperatures neared 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday. This alert will continue on Tuesday as these cities host Olympic football matches.

The yellow alert for Paris specifically addresses the “very hot” conditions forecast to persist overnight, with temperatures not expected to drop below 22 degrees Celsius between Tuesday and Wednesday. This moderate alert level advises people to “be attentive” to the impact of heat when engaging in physical activities, including sports.

Olympians competing in outdoor events in Paris and its suburbs will keenly feel the scorching heat. Events such as beach volleyball at the Eiffel Tower, BMX freestyle qualifiers at Place de la Concorde, and the women’s rugby sevens semi-finals at the Stade de France are all partly or fully outdoors.

Conditions may be even more sweltering in Bordeaux, where Spain will play Egypt in football on Tuesday afternoon. Temperatures in the southwestern city could reach 38 degrees Celsius on Tuesday before cooling off. Similar highs are forecast for Lyon, where Ukraine will face Argentina in football on the same day.

In Chateauroux, the central city hosting Olympic shooting events, temperatures could hit 36 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, according to forecasters.

In the run-up to the Games, some athletes had urged for event timings to be adjusted to account for the physical toll of competing at high temperatures and the risk of heatstroke.