Blue Stars basketball team, the winner of the Lebanese basketball Summer League in September. Photo:Lebanese Basketball Federation

"Sportsmen should do their best not to exhaust themselves during the day and not to make violent efforts during the training sessions and the games scheduled before the Iftar”, advised Riad Salim, the Lebanese sports doctor. “Sportsmen should walk for an hour before eating; this allows a better blood circulation. I also advised the sportsmen, during the Iftar, to drink one warm glass of water, but I strongly warned them against engorging cold water as it causes terrible stomachaches. I also recommended that the sportsmen maintain a balanced diet”.

Therefore, beware, during the Iftar, not to give in to the numerous sweets that are often on the tables! “As for trainers, I warned them against the overactivity of their players. I recommended the decrease of the training time to 50 minutes or to a maximum of one hour, which means three sessions per week. Longer training in a potentially blistering heat could have lead to severe consequences on the hearts of our players”.

Abroad, doctors and trainers were sometimes obliged to mingle Ramadan with sports. Christophe Baudot, who was the doctor of the French football club of the Marseille Olympics one year ago, explained that “during the heat period, there is always a risk of dehydration, which leads to a lower performance; we also adapted training sessions in agreement with the coach. But when sportsmen are well hydrated and their alimentation is adequate [outside fasting period], there is no problem”.