It is baking hot in the City of Light, warm enough to make rugby union even harder than usual. The Stade de France can be a chilly, impersonal place but it felt like a giant concrete microwave as the local heroes eased through their final training session ahead of Friday night’s scene-setter against New Zealand, with temperatures of about 30C expected for the opening ceremony.
By the time the first ball of the 2023 Rugby World Cup is kicked it might be fractionally cooler, but it is already clear this tournament will demand serious fitness and mental stamina. Extending the competition to seven weeks, ironically on player welfare grounds, has also added another dimension. By the time everything fully reaches the boil back in the same massive cauldron on 28 October, one or two sides will have wilted around the edges.
