Weathernews Inc. (Chiba, Japan; Chihito Kusabiraki/CEO) has dispatched five experts from the Sports Weather Team at Weathernews Global Center (GC) in Japan to Brazil in order to support sixteen of Japan’s national teams competing in seven of the international athletic events being held in Rio de Janeiro. The five staff members Sports Weather team arrived in Brazil on August 3^rd carrying special equipment for measuring local conditions that will be reflected in highly accurate forecasts created at GC in Chiba, Japan to support coaches, athletes and other team members in Rio. The specially applied forecasts provided by Weathernews will help give a boost to the physical condition of athletes and their training schedules, as well as to strategy and tactics to improve their chances of bringing home medals back to Japan.

Onsite Support for Sixteen Teams in Seven Sporting Events
Five risk communicators from the Sports Weather Team will remain onsite in Rio from August 3^rd until August 21^st coordinating with GC to support Japan’s National triathlon, sailing, rugby and women’s field hockey teams. Using their professional experience and proprietary sensing equipment to gauge conditions in the areas around the sporting venues, the Sports Weather team will then share synoptic observations with their colleagues at GC. The local data from Rio will be incorporated into highly accurate forecasting content tailored for Japan’s national teams.

How the Sports Weather Team Forecasts Each Event

• Forecasting for Triathlon: The strength of winds determines the type of wheels and tires that the team will use on their bicycles, and tides must be taken into consideration for the swimming course. This is an event where weather exerts a major influence on the pacing of the three sports that comprise it. Since wind speed and direction can change considerably from morning to afternoon in Rio, daily forecasts are critical for teams to know when the winds will change.
• Forecasting for Sailing: The accuracy of a forecast determines whether or not a sailboat can ride the winds that will carry it to victory. Particularly since wind direction changes between the before and after noon in Rio, the point for the Sports Weather becomes how well they can read the wind.
• Forecasting for Rugby: Come rain or shine or winds, rugby match strategy and tactics will change depending the day’s weather forecast. Each sevens rugby team plays several matches per day, and weather conditions in the time between matches has an effect on athlete’s recovery time, so detailed daily weather information becomes critical for the team.
• Forecasting for Field Hockey：Field hockey is always played on wet fields. However if there is heavier rainfall, the ball won’t travel. So the precipitation forecast on the day of the event will be extremely critical for the Sports Weather Team to deliver accurately.

Introducing the Five Experts of the Weathernews Sports Weather Team