London 2012: Becoming a Games Maker

London 2012 Becoming  a Games Maker

I was lucky enough to spend summer 2012 as a Games Maker for Olympic Games taking place in London. I had a role as a Protocol Team member in the Water Polo Arena and the Protocol Team was linked with the Languages and Services Team in the Arena. Although the two weeks that I spent as a Games Maker in the Olympic park were extremely exhausting and rather demanding at times, those two weeks were the most wonderful two weeks I could ever imagine. I was left with aching legs and tired eyes by the end, but for the memories I will always have with me, the exhaustion and the aching was more than worth it. Volunteering for the Olympic Games was such an incredible experience. 

Erasmus Students and the Olympic Games

With over 200 countries participating, the Olympic Games are a truly international affair. Language skills are essential in many, many ways to ensure that the Games run as smoothly as possible, thus there are plenty of opportunities for those possessing such skills. Living abroad and going on an Erasmus year only enhances your language abilities as well as develops your character, thus allowing you to be more suited to a volunteering role, especially in the area of Protocol and Language Services which is what I did. Although I hadn’t yet been on my Erasmus year however I can only imagine that having been an Erasmus student only boots your chances of success.

In my team, there were people from all over the world and mostly everyone was extremely well travelled and the majority had some sort of language skill. Such abilities were essential in helping us to be able to understand the needs and requirements of our clients so we could cater to their every need the best we could.

Those who were part of the Langue Services team were often required to employ their language skills down in the Mixed Zone after games where they help translate questions and answers the media asked the players. It seemed like an incredibly exciting role.

Many of my colleagues had already studied abroad and experienced their Erasmus years and I was reminded of the fantastic opportunities knowing a language could bring about. Being an Olympic volunteer isn’t something that only a resident of the host county can do either, as many of my team had come from all over the world and I had even heard that some people had sent people over especially to volunteer for the Games, so it really is something for everyone and something that brings the world together in a positive and peaceful manner.

 Be it Rio 2016, or future Games to come, I believe becoming an Olympic Volunteer is too good an opportunity to miss and I strongly believe that this is something everyone MUST do if they ever get the chance in their lifetime.

Becoming a Games Maker: The Application and Interview:

It was September 2010 and I had just started my first year of university at Roehampton when my first year French teacher suggested that the role of London 2012 Games Maker was totally worth applying for. At first I wasn’t really bothered as I didn’t really think that I, as an eighteen year old university student with no experience would be fit for the job. However something inside me encouraged me to fill out the online form for a role in the Protocol and Languages category- it wouldn’t hurt me to at least try. There was no harm in doing that even though I strongly believed I would not stand the slightest chance.  The form itself was rather simple and easy to fill in, and the questions asked were mainly the standard questions you would expect to be asked on any job application and I was required to write a little about myself, who I was and what motivated me.

I felt my chances of becoming a Games Maker grow even slimmer when I eventually had my interview the following summer of 2011. Although much had changed and I felt I had grown quite a bit since I first filled out the application form, I still felt as though I was the weakest candidate out of everyone in my interview group as all the fellow applicants seemed to have much more to offer. Many were already fluent multiple languages, they had lived abroad and many had decades of work and volunteering experience.  I didn’t really have anything at all in comparison.

During my interview which was an individual affair I was asked about how I would deal with certain situations, and I was required to give examples of times I had helped others or worked in a team. It was a challenge to come up with answers on the spot, especially when I thought my answers were no way good enough to meet the requirements. I had only had my job at Hollister, the popular clothes shop for several weeks at this point and thus I was forced to look back on my school days which fortunately provided me with some answers.

I left the Excel centre situated in East London in the scorching heat, convinced the interview could have gone much better. I felt it would be highly unlikely that I got an offer of any kind and tried to enjoy the sunny day the best I could after the interview that morning.

Summer quickly passed and I had just started my second year at the University of Roehampton in September. I recall getting in one night after attending a gig that evening I checked my e-mail to find one from the London 2012 Olympics.  It was a pleasant surprise to receive the news that I had been chose to be one of the Protocol Team Member’s at the Water Polo Arena. I was so shocked I didn’t quite know what to do at first, and in fact I didn’t actually tell anyone for good few days!

Becoming a Games Maker: Training and Uniform:

My first training session was in January 2012. I had to be at Wembley Arena for the afternoon. To make the journey across London extra fun, the city was covered in a thick blanket of snow the night before. Fortunately travel wasn’t disrupted too much and I eventually got across the city in just under two hours. Future Games Makers were descending upon Wembley Arena from all over the country and this big training session was only one of many. It was here, I received a folder containing all the information of what it meant to be a Games Maker and the all the vital information including the Games Maker code. We were also given a disc to help up train for the role at home. This training session was more of a general welcome more than anything and it was a big staged spectacular, presented by former Olympian Jonathan Edwards and there were several videos to be watched many of which featured Eddie Izzard.

It was only during my second training session in March which was more specific to my role, I realised what it is I would actually be doing as a Protocol Team Member. I would be spending two weeks attending to clients in the Olympic Family Lounge and the Olympic Family Stand. These clients would mainly be members of the International Olympic Committee, dignitaries and members of sporting federations such as FINA. When I was given a list instructing me on how to greet Royals, Presidents, Prime ministers, Sultans- the lot, it dawned on me what a reasonability I had for these clients wouldn’t just be anyone and everyone, they would be those with a certain status about them, though seeing as Water Polo isn’t a hugely popular sport, it seemed unlikely that someone like The Queen would be attending. However, we had to be prepared nonetheless.

In May, I was required to book an appointment to go a collect my uniform all the way across the city, in West Ham.  After seeing a few photographs of the Games Maker uniform I was a bit apprehensive about it, but I was pleasantly surprised. On a Monday afternoon it took be two whole hours to get from Roehampton to West Ham. Most of that journey was spent sitting on the bus to Putney which never really takes more than ten to fifteen minutes at most.

I arrived later than my allotted time, however that was no problem. In fact it was probably better. The massive warehouse seems as though it was expecting all the volunteers all at once, however, there was virtually no one around when I got there. I had to bring a piece of identification with me to prove that I was myself. I then continued on my way to pick up my laminated accreditation and then piece by piece my uniform. I was allowed to try on everything and there were other volunteers around checking that everything fitted as it should. Us Games Makers were given:

• One pair of trainers
• Two pairs of socks
• Two pairs of trousers
• Two Polo shirts
• One waterproof Jacket
• One cap
• One umbrella
• One bag
• One water bottle
• One Swatch watch
• One pen
• One notebook
• One guide
• Our Accreditation

By the time I had to leave I was well equipped for a small weekend away, and was great fun to manoeuvre around Westfield Stratford and Central London, as I had to return the trousers I had brought the previous day (I was being to hopeful over my size!) and I decided to pack far too much into my general bag, goodness knows what I was thinking! However, the experience that was dawning upon me was gradually becoming more and more real. 

Eventually, July arrived and finally it was time for my third and final training session. I was able to step into the Olympic Park for the very first time for my Venue Training.  It was great to be able to see it all before the general public. There was only about two weeks left to go yet the site still resembled a building site in certain areas. Boxes still needed to be unpacked and signs and decor still needed to be put up. Having the chance to sit in the Aquatics centre, seeing the orbit and the Olympic Stadium and of course getting an extensive tour of the Water Polo Arena left me with a feeling of great excitement. The day was long and tiring and there was an awful lot to remember, however, it was the first time I was able to see exactly how much work had gone into the creation of the Olympic Park which was truly beautiful, filled with colours and wild flowers. From that moment, it was clear to me that London 2012 was going to be very special indeed.

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