The Importance Of Volunteers In The Olympic Games

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Volunteers are the backbone of organizing a strong and successful Olympic Games. They are the reason each Olympic Games runs smoothly and are always enjoyable to watch. What these volunteers might not obtain with money, they do obtain in a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We are able to look at past successful Olympic Games volunteer programs such as Sydney and London and construct our own for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Volunteering in Sydney was not as prevalent as it is now. Organizers of the Sydney 2000 Olympics were hoping the Games would spark an interest in future volunteer endeavors. A lot of the volunteers were first time volunteers. The volunteer program was called GamesForce 2000. There were between 43,000 and 47,000 volunteers. …show more content…

Out of 250,000 applicants, 70,000 volunteers were selected. The London volunteers had a special title called the Games Makers. Jean Tomlin, Human Resources Director at LOCOG, said the committee decided to give the volunteers a special name since they are such an integral and necessary part of the Games. The name reflects what an important role these people have and how they are essentially the backbone of the Olympic Games. Sebastian Coe, Chair of the London 2012 Organizing Committee, stated “Volunteers are the lifeblood of the Olympic Games and pat of the DNA of thousands of people in this country.” (International Olympic Committee 2010) London is also the first city that secured a sponsor for their volunteer program…McDonald’s. McDonald’s and the London Olympics created a $1.2 billion sponsorship where McDonald’s lead and implemented the volunteer program. (Nichols and Ralston) London had a two-phase action plan for recruiting volunteers. The first phase was focused on disabled groups and sport specialists. The second phase of recruitment focused more on the general public and general volunteers. Throughout the UK, there were 9 regional recruitment centers where all volunteers were interviewed face-to-face. Orientations and training events were held on the weekends so students and individuals with jobs were able to attend. There were only 3 training events overall, all held in London. (Nichols

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