Japanese Olympians stepping up to the podium in Paris will have more than a medal to be proud of this summer: the carbon footprint of their eco-friendly team kits.
Unveiling Team Japan's official wear on Wednesday (April 17), Asics said the jackets, trousers and other items athletes will wear on the podium and at press conferences would have the amount of carbon dioxide emitted during production stamped on them, in a nod to the green goals put forth by the host city.
The Tokyo-based company said it reduced emissions on the official kits by about 34% from the last Games in Tokyo by using recycled and lighter material as well as renewable energy at its factory in Japan.
The team's warm-up suit jacket shows 8.8 kg of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) were emitted in its production while bottoms show 5.5 kg of CO2e.
The showcasing of green credentials has been de rigueur in recent Olympic Games, but Paris 2024's goal is the most ambitious yet: to halve the carbon footprint compared with the average of 3.5 million tons of CO2 emissions in previous Summer Games.
(Production: Irene Wang, Daniel Lim)\n
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