My journey to the Olympics begins

On 15 September 2010 not only was I getting ready to celebrate Mexican Independence Day but I also submitted my application to be considered a volunteer for the 2012 London Olympics. It was a long application, which actually took me a few days to complete, and I had to provide quite a lot of detail on myself, my skills, my interests, my strengths and of course my personal details. It was pretty complicated and I had to keep finding out stuff like my passport number and so on.

 
Ever since that day when London was announced as the venue for the 2012 Olympics I knew that I had to try my hardest to be a part of the event, somehow. Being a volunteer (or Games Maker as they are known) was the most obvious choice so I made sure my application was as thorough and detailed as I could make it. I finally submitted it on that September day and crossed my fingers that it would be good enough to get me an interview.


It was a long wait but finally I got the news I was hoping to get in March 2011 - I had an interview to be a Games Maker! The date took some coordinating as I was actually away on the first suggested date but after a few phone calls, the date was set: 1st June and I would have to go to the Excel Centre in London. I was actually looking forward to the day out!

I worked half a day and then made my way to East London for the interview on what was a gorgeous sunny and warm day. The selection event itself was, in my opinion, very well organised and after registration and a short wait, we made our way to watch a short video with more details on what it means to be a Games Maker (I hope this video is made public someday, it was pretty funny!) and then we went to our assigned cubicle where we had a 20 minute interview. The interviewer - a volunteer himself - was very nice and kept the interview moving along while asking all the required questions. It was here that I found out what team I was interviewing for: the Afterwards we made our way out - via a shop, very Disney! - and had a chance to write a message on a wall, for posterity.

I left the venue feeling that I'd done my very best but, was it enough? I know that I am a pretty good candidate and I have a lot of relevant experience but I also knew that the competition would be tough, so I didn't want to get my hopes up too high. So I prepared myself for another long wait...

In late September 2011 we had an email saying that offers were starting to go out for those lucky Games Makers that had been selected, so this made the wait even more agonizing, knowing that anytime now I could get the good news. But a few weeks went by and nothing. 

Finally, I got the news I was waiting for: just this week I had an email offering me the position of NPC assistant, based in the Athlete's Village during the Paralympic Games. In English, this means that I will be volunteering for the National Paralympic Comittee of a specific country (don't know which one yet) and will be presumably at their beck and call. I will have to complete quite a lot of training (including driver training as I will be in charge of a vehicle!) and there will be further detail on the role in the next few months. 

So I am of course thrilled, excited beyond belief and can't wait for the fun to start. I know it will be awfully hard work too (just like WDW was) but the rewards will be so worth it. I will get to meet lots of people from all over the world and will take part in what is a once-in-a-lifetime event. I hope to create amazing new memories and I promise to blog about it as much as I can. 

All that time I spent filling out the application form was worth it in the end!