London 2012: Being a Games Maker

London 2012: Being a Games Maker 

Sunday 29th July was my first shift as a Protocol Team Member at the Water Polo Arena as part of the 2012 Olympic Games. My alarm was all set to go off for twenty past five in the morning. Quite honestly I couldn't recall the last time I had to rise and shine at such a horrendously early hour. Awaking certainly was made harder by the fact I found it difficult to sleep the night before, anxious and excited about what the following day would bring.

The day got off to a fine start when I was dressing and couldn't figure out how to unfasten the belt on my trousers, it was clearly far too early for me! Thus I spend a good deal of time battling with trouser bottoms for a rather long time trying to get them up my thighs and over my backside. After a good deal of effort was spent trying I eventually succeeded. It was only then I realized that I needed to go to the bathroom!

The roads may have been quiet on the way to station to catch the 6.06 train, but the station was certainly not. I’d never seen anything like it and it wasn’t as though it was the normal workday rush hour. Among the many spectators making their way to Stratford early in the morning were the many Games Makers, making their way into London clad in their purple and red uniforms, many. For many, like me it was their first shit. I was lucky enough to find a colleague of mine whom I recognised from the last training session, but when the train made a stop at St Pancras, I didn't follow her onto the Javelin train, the faster more convenient option (which I later found out) to get to Stratford. Instead I alighted at Farrington to take the underground to Liverpool Street where I ended up changing lines for the Central Line. The station was incredibly crowded and so too was the tube. There was already a different spirit in London. Everyone seemed excited about what the Olympics would bring and everyone’s mood was so alleviated that people were cheerful and happy to talk to one another. Intrigued by my uniform, I got chatting to a family with young children who coincidently had Water Polo tickets that day. It certainly wasn't an ordinary Sunday morning in London.

Once I arrived at Stratford I had to endure the long walk from the station past the Westfield’s Shopping Centre, to security. Once my body was scanned and my bags checked, I was free to continue on my way to the Workforce check-in area for those working in the Water Polo Arena. Thank goodness that there were separate security entrances for accredited people like myself, as already at seven in the morning there were endless queues for the general public. It was quite a walk over to the check-in area where I was able to pick up a bottle of water and I got my first goodie of the two week- a very special Games Maker Journal. I then had to back in the direction I came towards the main entrance to reach the Water Polo Arena.

I had plenty of time to spare before the first ever morning briefing took place in the empty Olympic Family Lounge. The furniture, until then had been unused. Everything was spotless and sparkling in the morning sunshine. We were taken to our starting positions, and were rotated after every hour or so. There was a lot of standing around and unfortunately there wasn’t an awful lot going on so sometimes it got really tedious being in certain areas. Yet at the end of the day after guarding a few doors and watching a fair amount of men’s water polo, I was completely exhausted. My Russian colleague had fallen asleep on the train home as did I.

The next couple of days followed a similar pattern to the first. Yet despite the second day shift starting a little later, I still found myself snoozing on the train to London- A dangerous thing, if I didn't time that right. My tiredness often got the better of me on the way home from these last two shifts and I managed to get the wrong train home both times although it wasn’t a complete disaster!

On Wednesday morning I packed my bags and made my way down to Hornchurch, where I would be spending the next week or so staying with a lovely family for the duration of my late shifts. The commute to Stratford was cut by over an hour, which made things a lot easier especially as I needn’t worry now about having to catch a certain train back late at night.

When I first looked at my schedule all the way back in May, I was quite alarmed by some of the times my late shifts finished, the latest being quarter to twelve at night. However, in the end, I tended to prefer them more than the early shifts. They mostly finished a lot earlier than expected to so I wasn’t always getting back so late and the later start meant that I was allowed an extra few hours in bed. The extra time allowed one to feed oneself sufficiently beforehand too. This greatly softened the pain when you're positioned by the media door near the buffet table where one was allowed only to smell and not touch the elaborate dishes that the catering staff offered to our clients. I always found that to be like some cruel torture in the mornings when I had only had a measly little breakfast before my shift.

I had a cheeky McDonald's myself one day in the Westfield Shopping Centre, where I spotted a few Dutch hockey players treating themselves to some of the fast food on offer. It was quite bizarre. Wherever you went in the perpetually busy shopping centre there were always coaches and team members to be spotted, though it was always difficult to figure out who they were as their names were written in rather small letters on their accreditation. I didn’t want to make going to McDonalds a habit whilst I was on the late shifts, so I opted for some sushi the following day.

During the first few days of the London 2012 Olympic Games the amount of empty seats seen in the Olympic Family Stands had been picked up on by the media and they had caused quite the outrage especially as the public had had such a difficult time buying their own tickets. To make the stands appear fuller, we were to be getting seat fillers who were mainly teachers and their students. However, although were allowed in the Olympic Family Stand, they did not have any access to the lounge. Also, if there was a sudden increase in the number of honoraries, International Olympic Committee members or members of federations, the teachers and students would be asked to leave. On Wednesday, our manager kindly announced that we Games makers would be allowed to be seat filler to should we have a day off. Thursday was my first day off since starting my work as a London 2012 volunteer. Despite the fact that I most probably needed a little rest, I gladly took up the opportunity to come back to the Water Polo on my day off to spend a couple of hours watching Water Polo from the Olympic Family Stand. It wasn’t like I really had anything better to do, and I thought it would be nice to spend a more relaxing day in the Olympic Park as usually I was quite pressed for time.

To be able to fully watch a couple of water polo games without worrying who's trying to sneak their way into the Olympic Family Stand was a great little bonus. Another little extra, was the fact it was also the men's day to play. It was a very Eastern European affair, with Serbia taking on Montenegro and Olympic Champions Hungry taking on Romania. Both were tight, tense and high scoring games and I was lucky not to be deafened by the Hungarian fans, passionately chanting and cheering on their team. I didn’t really know anything about water polo before the Olympic Games admittedly, but over the two weeks I learnt an awful lot about how tough the sport really is. Players have to constantly tread water for the duration of the game as it is a foul to touch the bottom of the pool and players can only catch and through the ball with one hand. The team in possession of the ball has only thirty seconds so score a goal or else that possession is lost. Water Polo certainly isn’t a tame sport either. Players would come out of the water covered all sorts of cuts and bruises gained in scuffles with the opposition.

It was back to work the following day on a Friday, but that didn’t mean I didn’t get to see a little bit of water polo when I was out monitoring the stands.  I was gradually getting to know my team better, I had settled into the job and got used to the way things were run in the Water Polo Arena. Each day I wore my uniform with pride. I certainly was very happy to be there, soaking in the incredible Olympic atmosphere of the London 2012 Games and I just wanted to make the most of each moment.

There was talk going round that on Thursday night that some colleagues of mine made their way up the Orbit once it had been closed off to the general public. The rumours were true I passed on the news to my other colleague, an eccentric but kind-hearted Lieve, who insisted we gave it a go on Saturday night. She sweet talked our way passed the volunteers at the Orbit which at this time of night was closed off. During the day, I believed some people would wait three hours to get a view of London from the top, whereas us volunteers just had to wait until night fell and it was only a matter of seconds we were out on the observation decks making the most of the light up Olympic city of London. You could see out to Canary Warf and all the way to Alexandra Palace. Down below in the Olympic Park people were milling about like little ants. The Olympic Stadium was still buzzing with activity as the women’s 100m final was about to take place and we saw the whole thing from the orbit. It was such an amazing sight, though I have no idea who won! Nevertheless it was a pretty priceless moment. I was beginning to love the perks of being a Games Maker but that wasn’t over yet.

Sunday marked the beginning of the second and final week of my London 2012 Olympic Games. I wasn’t expecting to be able to do some of the things I had done so far. I wasn’t expecting that I would actually be able to sit and watch a couple of games of water polo on my day of, or get to go up the Orbit for free at night. However, the only thing I wanted to see as a volunteer in the Water Polo arena was a penalty shoot out. Sunday was my lucky day.  The shift change between the morning staff and the evening staff occurred during the women's quarterfinal game between Australia and China which had overrun a little and I was placed on the stands. It was the end of normal time and the game had just entered extra time, after which the game was still tied. It was thrilling to see a tense penalty shootout from a neutral point of view, but unfortunately for the Chinese girls in the water and my Chinese colleague positioned just metres away from me, (who's reactions were rather entertaining) the Australians where just slightly better and went on through to the next round. I was quite saddening to see the faces of the distraught Chinese team as made their way back to the locker room. It’s one thing seeing all the emotion on television but in real time it’s something else- more real and more touching. I felt rather sorry for the Chinese team though I guess someone had to lose.

As nightfall came, and our shift ended and the Olympic Family lounge was emptied, we had the chance to grab some of the leftover food which would just being going in the bin otherwise. But this was not just any food. This was Olympic Family food, thus pretty much the best food I had ever tasted, and I didn't even eat that much. The bread was the softest bread, the cheese the creamiest cheese and the cupcakes were the sweetest cupcakes I had ever tasted. It was a million times better than anything that could be found in the workforce canteen where I found the hot meals to be rather bland and basic. After a week of hot meals, I went for the colder options which included sandwich and pasta salads, this was a little more suited to my fussy tastes.

The workforce canteen wasn’t all that bad, it was nice opportunity to converse with other colleagues and catch up with watch was else was going on in the Olympics. I was a bit disappointed during the first week as there wasn’t really anything sweet to give me a much needed energy boost. I think I had quite a dependency on sugar back then and I found the lack of sweet stuff to be found baffling especially as the chocolate company Cadbury’s were one of the official sponsors of the Game. However during the second week of volunteering my pleas were answered and at the workforce check in areas, one was allowed to pick a couple of Heroes to munch on during the day.

Cadbury’s heroe’s weren’t the only things being handed out to Games Makers at the start of every couple of shifts. To keep moral high and ensure the Games Makers came back each day, little rewards were given out. The first was the journal I’ve already mentioned. We then each got four Games Maker pin badges every couple of days. They were all the say design but the coulours were different. The first was colourful, the second was bronze, the third was silver and the last one received was gold. On our last shift we each received a special silver baton and volunteering certificates. It was nice to be able to collect so many memoires of the Games. Some people planned on selling their badges, others traded them in for others as pin swapping is quite a common phenomenon during the Olympic Games. However I chose to keep everything I had and I didn’t quite get caught up in the entire pin swapping hype.

Monday was another day off that I spent back in the Olympic Park. I had another chance to be seat filler in the Olympic Family Stand of the Hockey stadium or the Basketball Arena, however I was running late and ended up at the wrong workforce check in. However its wasn’t a problem at all in the end as instead, I spent the afternoon, wandering around the park in its entirety, soaking up the sunshine in the gardens and checking out some of the local talent that was being showcased of various stages round the park. It was just so awesome to be able to take a little pause from the volunteering and sit back and soak in the ever more incredible atmosphere that was to be found in London. I found myself sitting by a band shell, in the warm summer sunshine, surrounded by beautiful wild flowers, pondering over my Olympic experience thus far. In the evening I was whisked away to Soho to catch a preview screening of the new documentary film, 'The Imposter' with my Orbit colleague, Lieve.

On Tuesday, I was back to work, slightly regretting not having rested my feet sufficiently following the previous days roaming.  The knock out stages were getting underway and slowly but surely the competitions were drawing to my end. Water Polo was one of the longest competitions of the Olympic Games so I was lucky enough to be volunteering to nearly the entirety of the two week duration of the Games. I couldn’t have been luckier- to spend nearly the entire Olympic Games in the Olympic Park really was something special and I greatly appreciated everything I had had the chance to do.

Any feelings of disappointment that I didn't make it on time to see any of the hockey and basketball games on Monday were suddenly swept aside of Wednesday. At first it seemed like a normal, fairly quiet evening in the Water Polo Arena. I wasn’t fussed over the time I went for dinner and consequently I was made to go just an hour into my shift. I was casually making my way back to the Arena from the canteen when I was told to see my manager immediately. Instantly, I worried I may have done something wrong, although, I could not thing of anything I had done wrong. I was pleasantly astounded to hear the words, "would you like to go and watch the basketball?"

Well I wasn't going to say no to that. No foot in their right mind would. I immediately changed into a medium black t-shirt and was on my way with a small group of my work buddies to the Basketball Arena the other end of the park. Basketball certainly is an enticing, quickly paced game. Blink and the scores change. We were lucky enough to catch two thrilling women's games, between Russia and Turkey, and France and the Czech Republic. Both games were won in the last few seconds and the certainly captivating and entertaining.

It was great to see something different other than water polo for a change and I loved being capture that great Olympic spirit elsewhere. We were singing along the La Marseillaise, and wildly cheering on the teams. I and my colleague Paul were rooting for the French, shouting “Allez les Bleues, Allez les Bleues” every so often.

Tough, would be the best word so sum up Thursday, seeing at it was women's final day in the evening. Spain and the USA were battling for gold. The lounge for a change was full, as too were the stands. It was a vast change in comparison to a week before. There were many people to usher and many people to control. There was one last chance to grab a bite to eat after the shift in the lounge, but my eyes were growing wearing, my legs week. I didn't have much time or energy to wait for just one client to finish his meal and his wine and be on his way so we could feast on the remains.

I journeyed back to Bedfordshire on Friday. There was only one shift remaining. The end was drawing nigh and it was all becoming a little sad. I really didn’t want it to end, but I felt in need of a good rest. I found myself back in London on Saturday for the Water Polo Protocol and Language Service team picnic in Green Park in the glorious sunshine with the wonderful people, I had grown to love. Each, regardless of age had many interesting tales to tell and advice to give. Never have I got to know such a lovely, kind and interesting group of people. All of whom, I'll miss very dearly, and wish them well as they continue on their own journeys through life. It was comforting to hear tales of Erasmus years abroad as I was going to be embarking on mine very soon after the Games. Mostly everyone still keeps in touch via social media.  

Sunday was the final day. It was such an incredibly emotional day. Whilst I was looking forward to getting a break and getting a rest, I resented the fact the games were drawing to a close. I would soon have to return back to the reality and soon the London 2012 Olympics would seem like some old distant memory or even some incredibly dream I once dreamed. Looking back now, the whole experience just seems too good to be true.

Unlike my commute for my first shift of the Olympic Games two weeks ago, the roads were empty and so were the stations. There were no Games Makers in sight, no spectators either. There seemed a strange quietness on the train which stayed with me almost all day. At seven in the morning the park too was deserted with only the workforce around. It was nice to be able to take one final look around and really take everything in. Appreciate every single last detail. I had just hastily purchased a camera and I was excited to use it. I used my spare time before my shift taking pictures of the quite, park whilst I could.

There was one last briefing in the lounge, one last water polo game to watch from the stands, one last day at standing in the corridors, one last day sat outside waiting for clients to arrive. It was a quiet morning, it the quiet before the storm in anticipation of the men's final later that evening. At the end of my shift and the beginning of the next, tears were shed as the time came for goodbyes and wishes of good luck for the future.

I must say I was reluctant to leave when the time came. Knowing that there would never be the chance to go back again, wear that uniform again, and see everyone together in a working environment again. I didn't quite want to let go. I was nowhere near ready to.

The past two weeks have been more than incredible. I did not expect to be out on the stands catching glimpses of the water polo games let alone have the opportunity to see London from the Orbit, and catch a basketball game. I would have been perfectly happy just doing my job and what was expected of me, as I was just so grateful to be at the Olympic park doing what I was.

People often said to me,"you’re not getting paid, what's the point?” But when it comes to something as big and incredible as the Olympic Games, I strongly believe money is completely irrelevant. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity without a doubt and not something one can simple  do again in four years time in their home country. To say I was there and to have had the opportunity to meet so many wonderful people is completely priceless and so too are the memories I have been left with. Would I ever swap my Olympic experience for money? Never in a million years.

People from all wakes of life have come together during the games, and as a Games Maker, people often stopped and chatted to me on the train or tube, interested and intrigued by what my specific role was. I was one the way home one night, and was stopped by a random couple on the train, who thanked me on behalf of all the Games Makers for their work during the Games. Such comments are so touching as you realize how proud people are of the work the seventy-thousand volunteers have been doing. With the uniform, people know you have a story, without it, your story is hidden, masked away, so I tell mine now, before I forget!

Since the Olympics the Games Makes have only gone on to receive more and more praise for their work and dedication. The nation was proud and I, for the first time in my life was proud of myself. Still six months on from the London 2012 Olympic Games, the work and dedication of the Games Makers is still being recognized and highly thought of across the country. As a thank you for my effort, I received a special supplement from the Times newspaper about the Games and a letter from the Prime Minister David Cameron.

Luckier Games Makers were invited along to the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the year awards and others, including a very lucky colleague of mine have just received a box of London 2012 medals. I must say I’m a little jealous.

Quite simple, in short: London 2012 was the best thing I’ve ever done. The depressing thing is now, at the age of twenty, I feel I’ve already done the best thing I will ever do in my life!

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