Meals, hydration and ice

The hotel where you are staying should provide three athlete friendly meals per day and a snack station in your team room. The snack station may be filled once a day, and it will then be up to your Team to manage the distribution.

Your team management (S&C, medic, nutritionist) will ask for menus, and these should be provided well in advance of your stay. If your chosen hotel is not used to hosting elite athletes, some information can be found here to start the conversation with chefs and housekeepers: World Rugby Passport - Nutrition.

You may wish to exchange some items on the menu for culturally popular foods, and this may produce an additional charge. Early conversation on menus, quantities and serving times will assist in providing the best possible environment for your team. 

Your team should also be provided with a post-match ‘snack’ at the match venue, which should provide protein and carbohydrate to aid recovery. Menus should also be provided, although there may not be the opportunity for significant changes.  

All menus should consider culturally appropriate choices (Halal, Kosher etc) and dietary requirements including vegetarian options. Separation of food due to allergies may also be required.

Squad members should be provided with three litres of water per person per day with players being provided with an extra litre on match days. Squad members should also be provided with a litre of isotonic drink per day. Your team may prefer to bring your own isotonic powder or gel. Check with your hosts if you can swap the isotonic for additional water and if the powder or gel will easily pass through customs. In particularly hot climate conditions, additional water and isotonic may be provided or may be available to purchase. 

Ice should be delivered to the hotel or training venue for ice baths and some additional ice for medical purposes. As an example, teams attending a Rugby World Cup are provided with 200KGs of ice per week with an additional 200KGs on match day. Adjustments are made should the weather be particularly warm. Further information can be found here: World Rugby Passport - Cooling the body.