Young Ambassador Seminar Innsbruck

Hey folks,

As outlined in the last blog entry, I wrote an article for the new Young Ambassador section of the Innsbruck 2012 homepage. The sub-page - which looks absolutely stunning - is now online, so make sure to check it out!

For your convenience, I took the liberty of re-posting the article her. You can of course also find it on said sub-page or by clicking here.

"For the 1st Winter Youth Olympic Games, 33 Young Ambassadors from around the globe have been selected to help the athletes participating in the Games discover and live the Olympic Values Excellence, Respect and Friendship. These Ambassadors were invited to Innsbruck at the start of September to take part in a training seminar including workshops, discussions, team-building activities and plenty more besides. Indeed, if there was one thing that was missing during the Young Ambassador Seminar it was the chance to sleep!

As well as spreading the spirit of the Youth Olympic Games, the Young Ambassadors’ main task is to prepare their athletes for the Innsbruck 2012 Culture & Education Programme (CEP). During the Seminar, the 33 youngsters got an exclusive preview of the Culture & Education Programme and had the chance to try out some of the CEP activities which will be on offer during the Games in January 2012. However, the journey to Innsbruck alone proved a true odyssey for some of the Young Ambassadors. For example, Sarah from New Zealand needed no fewer than five flights and 21 hours to get from the tip of the Southern Hemisphere to the regional capital of Tyrol. And with Ambassadors representing everywhere from Australia to Chile and Canada to Japan in attendance, she certainly wasn’t the only one who had jetted half way around the world to be in Innsbruck for the Young Ambassador Seminar.

After such long, arduous journeys, the official Welcome Dinner – complete with accordion player and dancers performing the traditional Austrian ‘Schuhplattler’ dance – was the perfect chance for the Young Ambassadors to shake off any remaining jet-lag and immerse themselves in Tyrolean culture. Just as during the Seminar itself, the guests at the Welcome Dinner were encouraged to get involved at every opportunity – not least on the dance floor! After seeing their moves, we reckon that Lea from Slovenia and Aliona from Lithuania must have Tyrolean roots – after all, how else could they have learned all the right dance steps so quickly? Straight after the Welcome Dinner the group headed out for the first ‘venue tour’ of the weekend – an expedition into Innsbruck’s nightlife via the city’s main bars. Suffice to say, much fun was had by all! ☺

Bright and early next morning the Ambassadors gathered to try out the different CEP activities for themselves. As well as finding out more about the activities in order to be able to support the
athletes in January 2012, they were also encouraged to make suggestions about how the individual seminars and workshops could be improved between now and Games-time. From getting down to the beat together in the Drumming Workshop to exploring the mountains of the Nordkette under a cloudless sky, all of the activities were characterised by fun, laughter and a real sense of team spirit, marking the start of many friendships.

However, the aim of the Seminar was not only to give the Young Ambassadors the chance to try out the CEP. Another important aspect was to learn more about the Young Ambassadors’ role in general and their mission for the Youth Olympic Games in Innsbruck. On hand to provide an overview of the Young Ambassador Programme was none other than IOC Executive Director Gilbert Felli, the man responsible for the organisation of all Olympic Games. “Singapore blazed the trail for the Youth Olympic Games,” Felli told the Young Ambassadors. “Now it is down to us to take the next steps along this trail.” To help them with their task during the Games, the IOC brought along a few surprises, including a cool outfit, useful accessories and the latest technological gizmos.

The Young Ambassador Seminar was over far too quickly, and despite only having met four days
earlier, there were many heavy hearts among the participants when the time came to say good-bye. However, it won’t be long until the Young Ambassadors are back together in Innsbruck for the Games, and in the meantime they will be working hard in their home countries to promote the 1st Winter Youth Olympic Games. Innsbruck 2012 – Be part of it!"

Innsbruck calling

Hey folks,

First and foremost, sorry for neglecting this blog for so long (People that have followed it since Singapore will know that this introduction will become quite frequent with me ;)). Last week(s) have been quite busy, so I was forced to step down from the blog writing a bit. I hope I can update it more frequently in the upcoming weeks.
Speaking of which: We are in the double-digit zone!! Only 98 more days to go until the first Innsbruck 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games (try saying that 3 times fast) will be opened.
Anni from IYOGOC has asked me to write a report on the Young Ambassador seminar taking place in Innsbruck in early September. I was of course more than happy to comply. However, after writing the text, I felt that it much rather belongs on this personal blog than the official games website. So I wrote another one much more suited to be published on the Innsbruck 2012 site. Since I did not want to have written the other article in vain, I just put it online here for yours to enjoy :)

Innsbruck calling

„Anyone who goes travelling has stories to tell “ If those travels lead said anyone to the Olympic city of Innsbruck to attend a Young Ambassador program, it will be hard to tell all the stories needing to be told. Let's try it anyway.

For me, going to Innsbruck was linked to a problem everyone would love to have. After having been honored with representing Austria at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore, I honestly did not know what to expect from the anew Young Ambassador seminar. Singapore has hands down been one of the best times in my life. What, if the games in Innsbruck could not live up to the ones in Singapore? What, if the new ambassadors won't be as much inspiration and fun as the "old" ones? I have to admit: I have been way too wrong. That's quite a nuisance, being given the fact that I should know by now that spending time with the Young Ambassador always is a tremendous experience.

So what is this Young Ambassador seminar all about? Basically, it is about two aspects. First, to introduce the 33 Young Ambassadors from all over the world - from Australia to Chile, from Canada to Japan and everywhere in between - to the Culture and Education program (CEP). Because one of the YA's main tasks is going to be promoting the CEP to their qualified athletes.

The other aspect might sound funny, however, it's a quite important one as well. To do their "job" as good as they can, the YAs need the right environment. So the seminar in Innsbruck provided an excellent opportunity to get to know each other and form a great team for the upcoming games. The team building process was significantly aided by the various CEP workshops and seminar, but also some extensive venue tours to Innsbruck's bars and clubs...let's but a mask of silence on those ;).

Back to the workshops and seminars: Those are a part of the CEP and were put through their paces by the Young Ambassadors. The feedback on all activities was very positive - all of them were planned and executed with a whole lot of dedication and motivation. At this point, I should definitely give a shout-out to Verena and Anni, not only for putting the CEP together, but also for taking splendid care of us during our time in Innsbruck.

One of the questions people asked me the most in Innsbruck was to what extent the Young Ambassadors of the Innsbruck Games compare to those of the Singapore Games. Unfortunately, this is a question I can not answer, since it is impossible for me to compare all the great people I met in both Innsbruck and Singapore. The question I could easily have answered, would go something like this: Do the Innsbruck Young Ambassadors have the same staggering energy? Oh yeah! And the travel continues...