“London will inspire young people around the world and ensure that the Olympic Games remain the dream for future generations.”
My time as a Gamesmaker and London 2012 as a whole inspired me to get back into radio and get more involved in sports. A colleague at Beach Volleyball works for the London Youth Games, Europe’s largest annual youth sports event, and told me they were on the look-out for volunteers and to get involved.
So on my first stint as a volunteer, I found myself at the Hall of Fame and Awards evening. This is an event held to recognise former London Youth Games competitors who have gone on to world class sporting careers, and to celebrate the role the Games have had in their development.
My role in the evening was part of the hospitality team, showing guests around the exhibits and sports demos. The evening was pretty awesome, had the pleasure of being the tour guide for the lovely Amy Marren (LYG competitor and London 2012 Paralympic swimmer, and she’s only 14!). Also got to meet Gemma Gibbons and Jo Rowsell (I got to hold her gold medal which was super heavy!).
Talking with different people through the evening it was made clear how important sport is for young people, whether it be in schools or as a hobby, and there will be more focus on this now than there has ever been. It was a great evening, the LYG is an awesome project to get involved with and I’m looking forward to working with them again in the future!
Some of the people I had the pleasure of meeting on the stands:
Colin Murray was cool, used to love his shows on BBC Radio One (and then there’s this video…).
Ed Leigh’s covering the Beach Volleyball was seriously entertaining! The Telegraph’s Michael Deacon hails Leigh as ‘the new Alan Partridge’, and with comments like “…Call me a bratwurst and cover me in sauerkraut, that shot was great!” you can understand why! I asked Ed about his comedic style of commentary, who said he’s just lucky that the lines come to him at the right time and none of it is scripted at all. What a legend!
Horseguards at dusk, with the backdrop of the London Eye and, just out of shot, Big Ben. The matches and lively spectators always gave the Beach Volleyball venue a great party atmosphere. Epic!
Team GB ladies played a good game at the Beach Volleyball last night but weren’t lucky enough to get through. Great support from the home crowd though, hearing 15,000 people singing ‘Swing low, Sweet Chariot’ was epic :-D
“Mayor Boris Johnson has said that people coming to London for the Olympic Games will find it to be “the greatest city on earth”. Mr Johnson was speaking as the Olympic flame was used to light a cauldron in front of thousands of cheering spectators in Hyde Park. The event marked the end of day 69 of the torch relay, which has travelled around the UK ahead of Friday’s Opening Ceremony.”
"Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do…"
-
Apple Inc., 1997.
Steve Jobs, 1955 - 2011. Revolutionised computers and music consumption. Awesome.
Clare is a radio and audio producer with more than 8 years experience. With a first-class honours degree in radio production, Clare has worked in community and local commercial radio as well as the BBC.
