Canada-Sweden gold medal women's soccer match moved due to Tokyo heat
With the heat in Tokyo continuing to wreak havoc on the Olympics, the IOC announced on Thursday that women's soccer gold medal match between Canada and Sweden has been moved from Friday morning in Tokyo to Friday evening in Yokohama.
Moving the game isn't something the IOC wanted to do initially. Both the Canadian and Swedish teams asked them to move the game to a later and cooler time, since the temperatures in Tokyo on Friday are forecasted to be in the 90s with a heat index of 97. The IOC first said no, rejecting both requests. But they changed their mind on Thursday, moving the game to the evening in Yokohama since the stadium they were going to use on Friday is being used for track and field that night.
“It is primarily about the players’ health we’re thinking about and trying to change the time of the game,” Swedish coach Marika Domanski-Lyfors told Reuters. “There’s a pretty big difference between playing in the afternoon or evening, and we are very much exposed to the warmth and heat.”
Numerous events have already been moved to a different time or location due to the heat, including tennis, the marathons, and race walking. The sticking point for the gold medal soccer match was most likely its timing — playing in the morning in Tokyo meant the game would be broadcast during prime time in the United States.
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