Why sport needs a climate risk assessment

November 20, 2025
Novak Djokovic collapses on court due to the heat at the 2025 Shanghai Masters

Australia released its first National Climate Risk Assessment last month. As it dropped, FrontRunners' Nicola Barr was playing her first AFLW games in a St Kilda guernsey, and Olympian Rhydian Cowley was competing at the World Athletics Championships in Japan.

Given their circumstances when they read the report, it was no surprise that one thing leapt out to the pair: sport was barely mentioned.

As heat and humidity caused rescheduling at the World Championships and heat stroke prevention centres were set up around the stadium, Rhydian got in contact with Nicola, and together they wrote about why this matters.

Sport is where we build community, stay healthy, and feel connected. But extreme heat, smoke, storms and floods are already changing how, when, and whether we can play.

Writing in The New Daily, Nicola and Rhydian argue that it's time to treat sport as essential infrastructure - and to reflect that in national climate planning.

Read their full story at thenewdaily.com.au.

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