athletes

In the report, titled Rings of Fire, it is argued that summer heatwaves in Tokyo during the past three years indicate that conditions will be tough.

Concerns over heat have caused the marathon to be moved from Tokyo.

Professor Mike Tipton said he expects Tokyo to be the most "thermally stressful Olympics" of recent times.

The University of Portsmouth professor helped to produce the report, which was backed by athletes, the British Association for Sustainability in Sport (Basis) and scientists from the Priestley International Centre for Climate at Leeds University.

One of them is 35-year-old Tetsuya Sotomura. When I met him on a sweltering afternoon earlier this week he was still hard at it in a converted factory building in a north Tokyo suburb, flying high into the air, spinning and tumbling on a massive trampoline.

Back in 2008 Tetsuya placed 4th at the Beijing Olympics, just missing a bronze medal. Since then he's fought injury that put him out of London in 2012 and Rio in 2016. Tokyo was to be his last hurrah, a hometown Olympics to end his trampolining career on a high. But another year is just too much.

This has been confirmed by the Team Samoa Chef de Mission, Nynette Sass at a podcast training workshop for a group of journalists that is being conducted by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

“Our officials will be present at the games and will walk up to athletes that won their events, say if they win gold, the official will come up to them and tap their back to tell them to take the test. If the athletes refuse, they have to have a valid reason like they have another event to attend to. If not, officials will be on their backs till they take the test,” Sass said.

Pacific Games Office chief executive Falefata Hele Ei Matatia said the Samoa Tourism Authority and the Hotel Association were working together to facilitate the needs of the participating teams.

The plan to use hotels would be a good financial contribution to the local tourism industry, Falefata said.

Meanwhile, the Chinese government is providing assistance for the construction of a new sports venue, the Faleata sports complex at Tuanaimato, as well as renovation work for all sports facilities at the Apia Park stadium.

The rules, which start on 1 November 2018, would apply to women who race in track events from 400m up to the mile.

The IAAF believes the new measures will stop women with high testosterone levels gaining a competitive advantage.

Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya is expected to be among those affected.

The South African runner has previously been asked to undertake gender testing by athletics chiefs but no results have ever officially been made public.

Fa'alavelave is the Samoan tradition where family and friends contribute money or gifts to major events – pulling together to support those closest to you.

Far from a Samoan concept alone, many of the Pacific Islands adopt this communal culture based on everyone chipping in. 

Around 2,000 youngsters and teachers featured in the Ceremony, which aimed to reflect the mantra of the Commonwealth Youth Games, such as inspiration and empowerment of young people.

Following a rendition of the Samoan national anthem played by the Police band and a hymn from the Games Choir, the Opening Ceremony began with the Athletes Parade as competitors from the Isle of Man, which hosted the event in 2011, led the 63 nations taking part in the spectacle around the track.

The Commonwealth Games Federation rejected a proposal by Ghana to issue sanctions against Samoa, for denying Sierra Leone entry, at this weeks General Assembly in Auckland.

Tuila'epa says it's the responsibility of his government to put safety first for the up to 2,000 athletes participating in the fifth Commonwealth Youth games.

He says he supports the decision because his country was the worst affected by the Spanish flu, which had killed 25 percent of Samoa's population back in 1918.

Team Cook Islands, to be headed by Cook Islands Sports and National Olympic Committee (CISNOC) sports manager Siniva Marsters, will be taking part in aquatics (swimming), athletics, lawn bowls and rugby sevens.

Marsters has become the second female after Rosie Blake to lead Team Cook Islands to an international event.

The athletes, aged 14 to 18 years, will be gunning for their personal bests in the week-long games in Apia.