Flagstaff鈥檚 reputation as a key training ground for world-class athletes continues to grow ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, with teams of athletes visiting the high-altitude city.
Runners, swimmers and other athletes commonly visit for three to four weeks to participate in training camps coordinated by HYPO2 and Northern Arizona University, which have built acclaim for high-altitude training.
Spending time in a high-elevation environment, where the air contains less oxygen, stimulates the human body to produce more red blood cells and improves the ability to take in oxygen. That higher red blood cell count and oxygen intake helps athletes run, bike or swim faster even after they leave altitude.
Athletes who have trained in Flagstaff often find success. Since anyone began tracking the number of Olympians training in Flagstaff in 1996, 356 Olympic and Paralympic medals have been won by athletes who trained here.
The teams are still being set for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris July 26 to Aug. 11, but Dan Bergland, owner and sports physiologist at HYPO2 in Flagstaff, already is preparing to count more hardware from athletes who visited Flagstaff after this year鈥檚 games.
After all, his company slogan is 鈥渢urning thin air into gold.鈥�
The British swim team was training in Flagstaff, and that nation already set its team for Paris.
鈥淭here鈥檚 nobody in the pool who is not going to be in Paris,鈥� Bergland said recently before the British team began a weekday training session at NAU鈥檚 Wall Aquatic Center. 鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty stacked. There鈥檚 quite a few gold medals swimming in the pool right now.鈥�
David Johnston, a 22-year-old from University of Texas, made his second trip to Flagstaff in May after a previous training trip in January.
His May trip was planned ahead of U.S. Olympic trials in June.
鈥淚 swam pretty well in February (after the first visit). I had more fitness. It鈥檚 good to come up here and have great races every day and practice with these guys I鈥檓 training with.鈥�
Flagstaff also happens to be popular with athletes because it鈥檚 a fun mountain town with 200 restaurants and bars, with plenty of sites a short drive from Flagstaff that make nice venues for training breaks.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been to Sedona, we went to the Grand Canyon,鈥� Johnston said.
Bergland just has to make sure athletes don鈥檛 stay 鈥渓ow鈥� too long, and spend at least 19 or so hours a day at Flagstaff鈥檚 elevation.
Johnston was in Flagstaff as part of The Swim Team, an elite competitive team that also includes Mackenzie Hodges, a 19-year-old attending University of Southern California who also is preparing for the Olympic trials.
Hodges said she had some 鈥渃razy鈥� altitude fatigue after arriving in town and putting in some hard workouts, but was adjusting after more than two weeks in Flagstaff.
鈥淚 came in here freshman year, had a little freshman 15 going and all that鈥檚 gone now. It鈥檚 great. I feel so light in the water. It鈥檚 awesome,鈥� she said after a workout.
She also took a day trip to Sedona.
鈥淚t鈥檚 so pretty. There was a whole rainbow and everything. It鈥檚 gorgeous,鈥� she said.
High demand for Flagstaff amenities
Bergland hosts teams throughout the year, with potentially several dozen athletes, trainers and support staff in town at any given time. Sometimes he must turn away swim teams because of the heavy demand on the NAU swimming facilities, which also support the university team and offer public availability.
Some teams are already booked at HYPO2 through 2028 ahead of the Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be different for Los Angeles. We are going to be super busy,鈥� he said, adding that Flagstaff is likely to see higher demand from teams wanting to train in the U.S. ahead of those games.
鈥淔lagstaff is kind of the sweet spot in altitude. If you go much higher than that, the benefits start to drop a little bit because it is a little bit harder to train higher than 7,000 feet. And there are some other problems. It is not as easy to sleep at night. If you train lower than that, you don鈥檛 get the benefits as well.鈥�
HYPO2 has hosted athletes from eight countries recently.
The company coordinates with Flagstaff hotels and short-term rentals, some of which offer discounts to athletes training with the company, so the competitors can focus on their training.
Elevation training involves more than just being at 7,000 feet elevation in Flagstaff. Another important component is being able to travel to lower elevations to train, and returning to the higher elevation of Flagstaff to sleep.
This is necessary because it鈥檚 just plain harder to exercise at altitude, and some athletes such as runners can lose their foot speed or similar skills if they only train at altitude. So, they usually try to spend as much time as possible in Flagstaff to stimulate their bodies to produce more red blood cells, but venture to lower elevations for hard workouts to keep their skills sharp.
This 鈥渟leep high, train low鈥� strategy is possible in Flagstaff because of the nearby Verde Valley, where athletes can access lower elevations to exercise with a reasonable 45-minute drive.
Bergland has coordinated with track facilities in those lower-elevation neighbors to Flagstaff for athletes to access.
The science of elevation training
HYPO2 works with athletes to ensure they get the most from their visit, and that can start a month or more before they arrive. He recommends athletes get their blood tested to check iron levels before they arrive, because if their iron is low, their bodies can鈥檛 produce more red blood cells and get the full benefits of elevation training.
Once they get to town, HYPO2 can assist with testing to see if they are suffering muscle damage from working out too hard.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had some teams get here and I have to talk to coaches and say they have to hold off a little, they鈥檙e working too hard,鈥� Bergland said.
HYPO2 also can provide a carbon monoxide rebreathing test that measures the change in athletes鈥� physiology after their time at elevation.
Coaches often plan visits to Flagstaff down to the day to ensure the athletes get the maximum benefit from their visit ahead of competitions or trials. Some come to increase their red blood cells and return to a lower elevation to train, he said.
鈥淚t allows these athletes to train harder when they go back to sea level,鈥� he said.