I'm currently in the middle of my final exam season; it has been an overwhelmingly hectic past few weeks of studying and completing assignments, but well, I'm here.
I felt the need to finally write about my volunteering experience at the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympics this past January. This is long overdue, but it was only recently that we received the certificate so I thought it’s nice to share.
I applied for this at the end of 2023 and had to undergo a selection process that included a short essay and an interview.
The interview, a group session held in Korean at the University of Seoul, was particularly nerve-wracking since I was the only non-Korean present. It wasn’t my first ever interview held in Korean, but it was definitely extra tense.
We were asked about our preferred areas of work and some general questions about the Olympics.
We were also cautioned of the extreme weather conditions, as the temperature could drop to -20 degrees Celsius (which it did, lol).
This event marked the 4th Youth Olympics ever held, and it’s the first in Asia.
Fast forward, my friends and I were accepted, and we had to complete online courses specific to the event, including the safety briefing.
I had to cut short my trip back to Malaysia and return to Korea in mid-January as the event was kicking off on January 16th and would run through to the end of the month.
I was assigned to the Media Operations Support team at the Sliding Center, overseeing all the sports events held there, including Luge, Skeleton, and Bobsleigh.
As someone from a tropical climate, these sports were entirely new to me but it was enjoyable to watch it take place with my pair of eyes.
Talking about being tropical, the snow was really heavy and it was freezing. On one of the days, the temperature dropped below -15 degrees and I had to work outside the office.
Thankfully, we were provided with full uniforms and heat packs so it wasn’t so bad.
Pyeongchang, which previously hosted the 2018 Winter Olympics, was covered in thick snow and it was extremely beautiful.
Our main responsibility was to oversee everything related to the media such as the Mixed Zone and to control and communicate with the press to ensure that everything was going smoothly.
We also had to check the authorization of each reporter and make sure they were allowed to be there.
Each reporter had their own level of clearance, and we had to ensure they were not interrupting other reporters, such as the official reporters from the Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS).
Given the language barrier for some team members, I often handled liaison interpretation to facilitate communication with the press under my manager’s direction.
The exciting thing about being on the media operations team was having the clearance to enter the Olympic Village.
We had the chance to meet and hang around with athletes from all over the world, even playing arcade games together and the interactions were incredibly exciting. I'm so looking forward to their participations in the ‘actual’ Olympics in the future!
We also got to exchange badges, and while I didn’t collect as much as the other volunteers, mine wasn't too bad. I got badges from the French and Slovenian Olympic teams as well as the US figure skating team.
I'm so glad to have met all of my fellow Media team members. They helped a lot, especially in making me feel included as a foreigner! We also watched the Asian Cup on TV together, where Malaysia was going against South Korea (which ended in a thrilling 3-3 draw).
All in all, volunteering at the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympics was a deeply rewarding experience.
The official work hours were 40 hours, and I have learned so much (and was speaking so much Korean that I was talking in Korean in my sleep, lol).
Communication skills enhanced, friendships made, and sweet memories engraved!
