tokyo 2020 recap
A week has passed since the Olympics ended and now I have nothing to watch on tv these days.. I’m a bit sad that the games are over since I spent almost everyday watching some event taking place but am also very thankful that I got to be a part of it! Here’s a recap of my experience volunteering for Tokyo 2020 :)
I spent 4 days volunteering in the shooting range in Asaka, Saitama where I joined the language services(LAN) team. Each day was more or less the same routine including checking in, greeting the team, checking the day’s schedule, and LOTS of time on standby. With consecutive days of hot and humid weather, I was drained by the end of each day, but just being inside the venue felt like a dream. Here are the highlights of each day :)
Day 1: toured the venue with the team
In between supporting other staff at the venue, we had some free time so some of the volunteers gave me a tour of the shooting venue. I got to see the 3 main venues up close and even got to watch the qualifications for the men’s trap event:) It was an exciting first LIVE glance of the games!
Day 2: assisted an interview with a gold medalist!
I got to help an interview with the gold medalist for the trap women’s final! I translated a short interview for a Japanese journalist at the mixed zone right after the medal ceremony. It was a little nerve wrecking with the limited time but I also felt lucky to have taken a small part in the frontline of sports journalism :)
Day 3: escorted the overseas media crew in the mixed zones
On this day there were back to back finals going on so we were in the mixed zone for the majority of our shift. I basically guided the reporters in their designated spots and explained the guidelines for how much time they have, who gets priority etc. I didn’t get to assist interviews this day since all the reporters came from the medalists’ home countries, but I got to see the interviewing process up close!
Day 4: more escorting the media crew and attending the press conference
This was the last day of the shooting event! We were a packed team on this day since almost every volunteer showed up :) It was the same routine as the previous 3 days and I spent most of my time escorting the media crew. I also got to attend the press conference after the medal ceremony which was cool to be a part of :)
Everything was restricted with covid but all in all it was an amazing and fun experience volunteering at the Olympics! I also met an array of fun people in these 4 days including an exchange student still trying to open a Japanese bank account and a full time worker who came all the way from Aomori! I even ended up briefly visiting the Olympic Village the following day with one of them :)
It’s a bummer I won’t be volunteering for the Paralympics but this experience is definitely one of my life’s top highlights :) I’m hoping to volunteer again for any upcoming games if I have the opportunity!
