Columbia sporting events bracing for heat this weekend
COLUMBIA, Mo (KMIZ)
Temperatures are expected to hit triple digits once again on Friday and then the high 90s for the rest of the weekend. These temperatures pose a risk to athletes and outdoor workers which could be a problem for two large events in Columbia.
The Show-Me State Games will begin the final weekend of their 2023 summer games on Friday while the Disc Golf Pro Tour will be hosting the Mid-America Open.
The first DGPT tee time is scheduled for 10:18 am on Friday while the last player's round is set to start at 3:55 pm when temperatures are expected to reach 101 degrees.
The Show-Me State Games has been preparing for the heat by encouraging participants, spectators, volunteers and officials to review heat safety tips from MU Health Care which can be found on its Facebook page and website.
Organizers have also prepared other precautionary measures to keep athletes and fans safe.
“We certainly have modifications throughout the city,” Dave Fox, Show Me State Games executive director, told ABC 17 News. “Whether it’s the reduction of playing time, certainly in soccer or some of our diamond sports we will start with mandatory water breaks. So yes, we do have things in place.”
Some Mid-Missouri high school football teams have had to reschedule or cancel practices this week due to the heat. However, Fox says they don’t have any plans of changing start times yet.
“We have several individual events that will start early in the morning. Many of those will probably be done by the noon hour so the early afternoon," Fox said. "For some of the other events where heat is a concern, the other thing is we do have, with our partners at MU Health Care, a medical presence at many of our outdoor events whether it’s EMTs and an ambulance and or trainers. We also do have trainers, hydration, and air conditioning in many of those venues as well. If we do have a problem we can give access to care if they need it.”
Meanwhile, the Mid-America Open is expecting 200-300 fans. But they also have 150 players and 50 staff members to worry about.
“The biggest thing number one is water, so we have an entire ice truck with two pallets of ice and we have these giant coolers all over the course filled with bottles of water. And those are free and available to all the players all the spectators all the fans all the staff,” Joseph Douglass, the Tournament Director of the Mid-America Open, told ABC 17 News. “We also did some safety training tonight to talk about signs of heat exhaustion.”
The PDGA typically has water at all of its events. Just not this much.
“We always have water available but not to this degree,” Douglass said. “We try to go above and beyond so we have two entire pallets full of bottled water which is not the greenest thing in the world but when you need water right away and right now sometimes you have gotta make some sacrifices.”
