OLYMPICS CAREERS

THE BEIJING OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE

BY PAULA CLAYTON T

his was my second Olympic cycle, but my approach to this one

compared with Athens was completely different. Five years on, I am a much better soft tissue therapist. I am far more experienced now, and looking after 63 athletes in Macau and Beijing was not as intimidating as it may sound to others. I know most of the athletes with whom I work, and my relationship with the rest of the medical team has developed so we are now a close-knit team in every sense of the word. Before 2003 I hadn’t spent

much time travelling with athletes in situations where we ate, slept and breathed the same air, in the same space, for extended periods of time. I was nervous on my first trip – to the Olympic training camp in Paphos and the Aphrodite Hills – and I felt like a fish out of water. The intensity of the athletes, coaches, camps and treatment schedules was completely alien to me, and at times I was overwhelmed. The lead-up to Athens moved at such a fast pace. The pressure and intensity increased daily, but I revelled in it. This was where I knew I should be. I gained confidence in my ability and in the team around me. By the time Athens descended on

us, I had been on several international trips and it was second nature to me. I fitted in, and my skills were a perfect match for the track and field athletes. The medical team as it stands now has been a unit for three years, and we regularly travel together. We ironed out any challenges early on, and we now have relationships that are strong

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This article offers an insider’s view of the Beijing Olympic Games. Sports massage practitioner Paula Clayton compares her experience at Beijing with that at the Athens Games four years ago and explains what makes her team work successfully.

enough to deal with any differences that we may face. This makes for an extremely comfortable and supportive environment, which is paramount when you are away from home for an extended period of time and are likely to go through a number of emotions along the way. I was told of the death of a family friend while I was at the world championships in Osaka 2007. In any other environment, this devastation would have sent me spiralling into emotional turmoil. Instead, I was given, without hesitation, the time, space and support that enabled me to continue to do my job in an already highly charged, emotional, competitive environment. I was a person first and an employee second.

The stability of the medical team

lays down a foundation that is strong and certain. Having no concerns about who you might work with, or what type of athlete you might come across, or having a difficult member in your team, allows you the space to do your job to a very high standard and to cope with other potential problems along the way. Working and living in the Olympic

village is like being in a bubble. In Beijing everything was organised so well that life and daily activities became effortless. Athens was similar, but China threw inordinate amounts of money at organisation and it came across. Unfortunately, for those stationed

outside the village, such organisation was definitely not the case. Taxi drivers who were brought in from surrounding areas to help with the load didn’t know where the village was or how to get to the different gates due to the security and one-way systems that were in place. This meant large amounts of time were taken just travelling from A to B. Not having accreditation and only having day passes produced its own set of nightmare processes, which had to be followed. Luckily for us, we had none of these problems. Having full accreditation meant that we could travel freely and easily without so much as an afterthought. Buses were always on time, and as soon as one left another arrived. The food was

IS LIKE BEING IN A BUBBLE

WORKING AND LIVING IN THE OLYMPIC VILLAGE

7 STRICTLY ACTIVE