Winter Olympians face a number of challenges as they chase Olympic gold. But one of their greatest opponents, that is rarely mentioned, is the frigid weather in which they compete. Besides mastering their sport, winter athletes must learn to cope with freezing temperatures and protect their bodies including their lungs so that they can continue to perform at an optimal level.
No matter how fit an athlete is, freezing weather is hard on their bodies and can cause health issues that last well beyond the final race. Cross-country skiers, for instance, who train and compete in subfreezing conditions, commonly develop chronic cough. This is because their airways are strained and irritated by the cold over a long period of time. Canadian Olympian Katherine Stewart-Jones described these symptoms as ‘race hack,’ or skiers cough’ to the Journal of Medicine, as a cough that “goes all the way into your back...causing a burning sensation. I’ll get race hack pretty much every race I do.”
“This is a chronic obstructive lung disease caused by chronic exposure to extreme cold and often dry air causing major stress on the airways,” physician and CEO at the Chicago Allergy Center, Dr. Juanita Mora, explained. “It is attributed with long term, high intensity exertion in cold weather causing airway inflammation and can even cause heart changes like enlargement of the right ventricle of the heart to keep up with oxygen demand.”
Skiers are not the only Olympic athletes that are affected by the cold. In fact, cold weather is a common trigger for anyone with asthma because the cold, dry air can irritate the airways causing coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath. Additionally, the prolonged struggle to breathe and strain on the airways is one known cause of exercise-induced asthma (EIB) in nearly 23% of winter Olympians. Studies specifically show that behind cross-country skiers, who have the highest occurrence at around 50%, about 43% of short-track speed skaters, 21% of figure skaters, 17% of Nordic combined and 15% of ice hockey athletes all struggled with EIB.
What Happens to Your Lungs in the Cold
But why does this happen?
“We have to remember that lungs are our most fragile organ. They do not like extreme temperatures,” Dr. Mora continued. “When cold air sets in, people are at risk of developing bronchospasm of the airways. People often start coughing/wheezing/feeling short of breath, especially if they have underlying lung disease such as asthma, COPD/emphysema, chronic bronchitis or any other lung disease.”
When the air is particularly cold and dry, and when the amount of air breathed in and out is increased while participating in exercise outdoors, the airways become inflamed. Elite skiers, for instance, increase their breathing rate from about six liters per minute at rest to 200 liters per minute or more during a race. This drastic increase in oxygen demand results in larger amounts of cold, dry air to be inhaled, which can result in narrowing of the airways, reducing the athletes’ ability to breathe normally.
Unfortunately, this continued cycle of irritation can lead to permanent inflammation and asthma diagnosis. So, for elite athletes, frequently repeated increased ventilation during training and competitions in combination with the repeated environmental exposure to cold air in outdoor winter sports puts them at risk. “EIB and asthma occur in 30-70% endurance athletes because of dehydration of the airways and long cold exposure that occurs through extremely intense and long training hours,” said Dr. Mora.
How Olympians Protect their Lungs in Winter
Aside from mastering their sport, many winter athletes are put through cold habituation. This physiological adaptation gets the body accustomed to cold through repeated, consistent exposure. It is also essential for any athletes working out in the cold to have a thorough warm up lasting 15-20 minutes if possible. Though this may result in reduced shivering, less intense vasoconstriction and higher skin temperatures (especially in hands/feet), your airways are still at risk.
For this, many athletes use heat and moisture exchange masks (HME). These face masks are worn during training and prior to competition so that heat and moisture is captured and used to warm and moisten the inhaled air as a defense against airway dehydration and subsequent narrowing. For people who do not have access to these masks, using a scarf or any available mask will do.
Athletes, like other people with asthma, are usually directed by their healthcare provider to use their daily maintenance (controller) medicines prior to working out or competing. They should also always have access to a quick-relief (rescue) medicine for symptoms, especially when exposed to asthma triggers, such as cold air. “Safely exercising for our Olympic athletes includes a good warm-up, layering clothes and using wind/waterproof outer layer, covering exposed skin, hydration and if there is any history of asthma or an underlying lung disease, use and carry your quick-relief inhaler. Most important of all—listen to your body!”
Learn more about exercising in the cold or exercising safely with asthma on our blog.
Blog last updated: February 13, 2026
