【Behind the Scenes of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Games】What Kind of Weather Information Is Being Used to Ensure the Safety of Staff and Athletes from 45 Countries and Regions?

The “20th Asian Games and 5th Asian Para Games” are currently being held primarily in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture. While intense competition is taking place day after day, there is actually a system working behind the scenes that supports the “decision to proceed” with the Games and “safety checks” in the event of an emergency.

That service is “Weathernews for business,” a weather information service for corporations. In this article, we’ll take a look behind the scenes of the tournament to see how “Weathernews for business”—provided to a total of 40,000 tournament staff members as an official supplier—is being utilized.

Supporting 40,000 Event Staff with the “Weathernews” Weather App

The 20th Asian Games opened on September 19 and closed on October 4. The Games were held over 17 days at 54 venues, and the Japanese team put on a remarkable performance, winning a record 83 gold medals.

In addition, the 5th Asian Para Games began on October 18, are currently underway, and will conclude on October 24. Fierce competition is taking place over seven days at 19 venues.

The area around Nagoya City in Aichi Prefecture, which will serve as the main venue, actually experiences unstable weather from September through October. Looking back at data from the same period over the past five years (2021–2025)—a total of 180 days—rain was recorded on as many as 61 days, which works out to “rain falling once every three days.” Furthermore, during this time of year, disasters that pose a danger to daily life—such as approaching typhoons and the formation of linear precipitation zones—are not uncommon. In fact, warnings related to approaching typhoons have been issued twice over the past five years.

At international competitions attended by many athletes and staff from overseas who are unaccustomed to Japan’s weather, having access to accurate weather information is essential for ensuring the safety of participants. Accordingly, Weathernews will provide “Weathernews for business”—a corporate weather information service based on its weather app—to a total of 40,000 people, including organizing committee staff, volunteers, and team leaders from participating countries, to help ensure a safe and secure event.

While we have a track record of providing weather information to organizing committees for international competitions in the past, this is the first time we are making the app available to all team leaders from participating countries. This also reflects the organizing committee’s “strong commitment to safety measures.”

Use the Latest AI Typhoon Forecasts to Plan Precautions a Week in Advance

For this tournament, a large passenger ship anchored in Nagoya Port was used as athlete housing. When a ship is at anchor, there is a risk that strong winds and high waves caused by an approaching typhoon could snap its mooring lines, causing it to collide with the pier or other vessels; therefore, it must be evacuated to open water before danger strikes. For this reason, accurately tracking the typhoon’s path and monitoring sea conditions were critical factors in making operational decisions. “Weathernews for business” does more than just provide weather forecasts for the area around an event venue. Its greatest strength is that users can directly view and analyze “the latest, highly accurate forecast data” to support critical on-site decision-making.

Direct Comparison of Multiple State-of-the-Art AI Models

It incorporates the latest forecasting models, including Google’s weather AI model “WeatherNext (FNV3).” Weather forecasting AI has evolved rapidly in recent years, and there are an increasing number of cases where it demonstrates greater accuracy than traditional physical simulations. Since this system allows you to compare multiple models on a single screen, you can gain a detailed understanding of track variations and forecast uncertainties at an early stage.

“Typhoon Probability Forecast” Visualizes Risks Up to 15 Days in Advance

Under the Meteorological Services Act, general news reports—such as those on television—are generally limited to forecasting a typhoon’s path and intensity up to five days in advance. In contrast, “Weathernews for business” allows users to visually track the risk of typhoon formation up to 15 days in advance through color-coded maps. By identifying signs of a typhoon before it forms, you can prevent last-minute chaos and begin adjusting schedules and reviewing evacuation plans well in advance—more than a week ahead of time. It is precisely this “predictive capability that creates a time buffer” that strongly supports accurate decision-making in event management.

An AI agent that overcomes language barriers to address users' concerns, used by staff in 45 countries and regions

In settings where people from diverse nationalities gather, the “language barrier” is a significant challenge when it comes to ensuring safety. The Weathernews app not only supports English but also features an AI agent that responds to user inquiries in their native language. Thanks to this feature, even overseas staff who do not understand Japanese can now accurately understand the information and take appropriate action while viewing the same weather updates.

A calendar that lets you see at a glance the probability of a competition being canceled due to rain or wind, helping you determine whether to hold the event

The 20th Asian Games will run for 25 days and feature 300 events. With competitions in all sports taking place simultaneously across 54 venues, determining whether each venue is suitable for hosting events is an extremely difficult task.

Therefore, by registering the competition schedule in advance and utilizing the “Schedule” feature in “Weathernews for business”—which displays the probability of a match being canceled in calendar format—we’ve made it possible to easily manage the weather risks for each match.

In addition to an easy-to-understand dashboard color-coded into three levels—“Normal,” “Caution,” and “Alert”—the system allows you to check weather risks at each competition venue up to 10 days in advance, helping you adjust schedules when considering postponements.

It also includes a feature that lets you report your status via the app in case of an emergency

“Weathernews for business” also includes a “Safety Check” feature designed to monitor employees during disasters. When disasters such as earthquakes, typhoons, or linear precipitation zones occur, this feature helps organizations immediately determine whether staff are in safe locations and whether events can continue, aiding in decision-making. “Weathernews for business” is also utilized as part of business continuity planning (BCP) measures for approximately 4,000 Organizing Committee staff members and others. In the event of an earthquake, based on the app’s location data (*1), emergency earthquake alerts and tsunami warnings are automatically sent simultaneously to staff in the affected area, and they can also submit a response to the “Safety Check” (*2).

*1: If location services are turned off, notifications will be based on weather information for preset work or home locations. *2: The Games Organizing Committee and Weathernews have entered into a service contract for the provision of weather information and will provide weather-related support through “Weathernews for business.” While the safety confirmation feature is not included in the specifications of this contract, the committee will support Games operations by effectively utilizing the system’s ancillary features.

At international sporting events, weather information has become a standard part of the infrastructure used to ensure the success of the event and the safety of participants. Furthermore, the importance of “preparedness” based on weather information aligns with the business continuity planning (BCP) challenges currently faced by companies. These challenges include ensuring reliable information sharing among a diverse workforce, establishing systems that allow frontline staff to make independent decisions while referring to company-wide information, and determining how to quickly assess the extent of damage during a disaster. Because it provides a one-stop solution covering everything from “advance forecasting of weather risks” to “initial response during a disaster (checking on the safety of employees),” it is widely used by many companies.

To protect our employees and ensure business continuity in the face of ever-changing weather risks. Weathernews will continue to support the safety of people, society, and businesses through the latest weather technology.

Click here for more information about “WeatherNews for business”： https://wxtech.weathernews.com/en/products/wfb/