The Last Leg

Still a few days to go until I fly out, and am sorting my "down time" already.
The Last Leg show will be on air from the Olympic Park each evening of the Paralympics, as it was for London 2012, so applied for tickets and have been allocated for 10th and 14th. It goes on air Channel 4 at, 8pm UK time, 4-5pm Rio time, so for a fun and direct review of events, get watching , you might even catch me in the audience.
(The last leg facebook page)

And of course if you want coverage of the games, check out the link below for the schedule and what's on when.
Will see if I can photobomb Claire Balding while she is live on air. Wave if you see me.   http://paralympics.channel4.com/competitions/rio-2016/news/newsid=1243191/index.html#how-to-watch-the-2016-paralympic-games-with-channel-4

The Journey to Rio 2016

For those that have absolutely no idea about me, I do like to waffle lots, so posting could be long winded, as my motto is usually why use one word when 100 will do.
So a bit of background .....
I guess like a lot of people, volunteering for London 2012 was a big deal. An Olympics and a Paralympics on home soil was not something to be avoided. I wanted to be a part of it, to be able to say, I was there.
After what seemed a lifetime, the process for applying and eventually being selected arrived. I was interviewed by telephone and finally received an offer to drive Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles at the Paralympics, and, while it was not my first choice of role, it was the most fabulous experience. So many different memories created and friends made at the time and since, with our shared passion for getting involved and being in the thick of it.

To say that the Paralympics fired a passion for volunteering would probably be a bit of an exaggeration, as I had been volunteering at various things before then, but it certainly gives you more insight into big events and more confidence and chances to do more of the same. Opportunities I may before have overlooked appeared and were seized on as I felt would be fun and also give something back.

After the London Games I became a "Join in" local leader to try and inspire others to also get involved and worked with a great team to try linking grass roots sports clubs with volunteer support and being part of it gave me other chances to do even more, just because I was a Join In leader.

I headed off to take part at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, and then through Join In I was able to help at the training camp for the Invictus Games, meeting many of the athletes (and Prince Harry), and supporting their teams, (especially in archery, where another volunteer I met there there is part of this year's Paralympic archery team and I am so excited to be able to go and see her take part "Go Jodie") , I headed to Bath University for the Special Olympics National Games, which is the official 3rd branch following on from the Olympics and Paralympics, and last year headed to Nottingham to support the athletics at the Cerebral Palsy World Games.
I have volunteered at the London Marathon finish, The Great South start and finish, and recently have taken charge in the finish area for the ABP Southampton Half marathon. I also coach beginner runners and help at many local sport events. In fact you name it, if it sounds interesting and they need help I am in. I have done admin for a deaf charity, learning sign language along the way, knitted for a WWII display, crocheted poppies and beach huts for fundraisers and displays, and guided tour groups around Southampton Railway Station for the Kinder Transport 75th anniversary play that was touring the country.

So after all that, it was a natural thing to then apply to be a volunteer at the forthcoming Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympics. I applied, and received an invite to "interview" via a skype style process in a group setting with half a dozen others from various countries, which was an interesting experience (26/08/15). This was followed just before Christmas by invites to be involved in both games, working within the Main Press Centre. Giving us only 10 days to accept the role, I immediately accepted both, and decided I could "think about it later".
My Role offered.....
Press Conf Booking Office TM

Provide and collect booking forms, provide information about booking procedures, provide support in conference rooms, distribute earphones, prepare documents and signs, among other activities.

Then followed months of hard decision making, trying to take everything into account, could I realistically be away from home for 8 weeks or so, and that seemed to be a no, so as paralympic sport side I find more rewarding and inspiring, I decided to drop the Olympics and just do the Paralympics and even then I was terribly undecided, having heard so many mixed reports about Rio.... Zika, safety, funding for the games etc. etc.
Once the Olympics got underway, and several of my friends headed out to help there, the feedback coming from them eventually persuaded me that going would indeed be a lifetime experience.

So I head off on 2nd September, via Casablanca with Royal Air Maroc, who I hope will deliver me safe and sound in Rio on Saturday, when I can get my bearings, do my on site training (4 hours in Portuguese apparently, how to get immediately immersed into the language) collect my uniform and accreditation and sort myself ready for my first shift on 5th.

So there you have it, some background and some build up, with plenty more to come I am sure. Will try and get some photos and feedback on the general atmosphere of the games and how volunteering there works.

Time to volunteer


Obrigado pela oportunidade Brasil -  até breve 
(Thank you for the opportunity Brazil - see you soon)

Her name is Rio and ............

Whoop Whoop.
Hi folks, well here we go, a fledgling blog in progress and we are off and running, so to speak.
This time next week I will be sweating whether I have packed everything I need for the epic journey out to Rio 2016 where I have been assigned a role as a "Press Conference Booking Office Team Member" at the Main Press Centre (MPC) at Barra Olympic Park. Well that is the official title I hold at present, as all could change due to the latest news from Rio that funding has had to be cut for many things and I don't yet have any idea if my role will change. Currently all I know is a friend out there at the moment, who is doing a similar role, has just received her accreditation, so fingers crossed.

Over the course of the Olympics I have been reading bits being fed back from many of the Olympic Volunteers, about their time out there, how much fun they are having, and collating the hints and tips for my own journey to come. I do have rather a long list. So many places to visit in my time off, and not enough time off to do it all. So hints and tips in hand and Uber app at the ready to get me round everywhere.

I am hoping I will get internet access OK while out there, even if I turn my phone off to save the extortionate call charges, so whatsapp and facebook and email will be my friends for the 18 days I am there.
The plan is to update using this and just post links, to save me a load of time. But will see how things go.

Having spent months agonising about whether or not to take the plunge and go, for many reasons, it is time to sort out the Volunteer mentality and get on the plane with all the excitement of making the Paralympics the best spectacle ever. (All by myself of course with no help from others ;-) )
So....

Obrigado amigos e bem-vindo ao meu Blog Rio
(Thank you friends and welcome to my Rio Blog)