This week a year ago saw the beginning of the test event programme, with volleyball the first of 45 events held in Rio over the subsequent 12 months. And now we see the venue patiently and quietly awaiting the arrival of “The Main Event”.
Many people may be surprised to learn that we essentially run the games twice, at least from a sport operations and technology perspective. Given the scale of the viewing audience, it does kind of make sense to run a just a couple of tests! From a technology perspective we do our best to deploy the same scope for all the results and core telecommunications systems. This enables us to operate each venue in as close to games mode a possible, and this also allows us to identify any gaps, not only in the tech infrastructure, but also in processes and procedures.
Some of my fondest memories of the Sydney 2000 games are of watching the volleyball competition in the Sydney Entertainment Centre. And what I recall most was the excitement and noise generated by the relatively small but incredibly enthusiastic contingent of Brazilian fans! So here is to the Brazilian women’s volleyball team continuing their reign as Olympic Champions by claiming their third gold medal in as many games here in Rio, in front of what is sure to be an amazingly enthusiastic home crowd!
Happy 20 days to go!
P.S. I want to thank you all for the great messages and emails you have been sending me about this blog, it really is my pleasure to write! And if there is a specific topic or question please don’t hesitate to use the comments section below or send me an email. Thank you! CP 🙂
Photo Credit: Stu Frame!