Syracuse.com - Syracuse grad: Working in Olympic Village in Sochi marked by anticipation, uncertainty

[HuntingNY-News]

Maybe Russia wasn't prepared to host the Winter Olympics, but they're figuring it out.

A 2013 graduate of Syracuse University who is pursuing a master's in Information Management, Brittany Legasey is currently working as a volunteer press assistant for the International Olympics Committee at the XXII Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

By Brittany Legasey | Contributing writer

SOCHI, RUSSIA -- It may be surprising to hear that the most difficult thing for an American living in Sochi, Russia for work at the Winter Olympics is the anticipation. Not anticipation in the traditional sense of the word, but anticipation flooded with uncertainty. After more than two weeks in Russia, it seems to me that this type of anticipation is typical here. No one is completely sure what's going on, but it's not a problem. The general sense is that collectively we will figure things out.

It seems like I'm always waiting for something. Everyone else is too. Whether it is for the bus, for the internet to be fixed at Olympic Village, for traffic to clear or for the long line to move ahead so that I can check in at the cafeteria and eat. To accomplish anything in Russia one must wait for an insurmountable amount of time. At first this was extremely frustrating. I was still operating on the western expectations of efficiency and customer service. But after a couple of weeks, it no longer troubles me.

But finally, things seem to be progressing. I moved into Olympic Village on the coast last week, met my roommates and manager, and quickly became friends with all of them. I've even grown close to my roommate Natalya, who is what they call a 'Silver Volunteer' in her late forties or early fifties. Natalya speaks English 'nemnoska' or very little, but it's okay because I speak Russian nemnoska. Linguistically we are evenly matched. I feel so fortunate to have her, because she has both encouraged and inspired me to speak Russian more often, as it's the only way that I can communicate with her and the majority of the other volunteers here. Luckily for me, my two other roommates and my manager are all quite proficient in English.

I started work at the check-in desk at the main hotel of Endurance Olympic Village. This is where my segment of the press operations department operates from. We are in charge of facilitating and monitoring press coverage for this entire complex - which hosts the biathlon and cross-country skiing venues and houses the athletes who will compete there. My work is surprisingly more rewarding than I expected. My three colleagues would be as lost without me, be it I am the only native English speaker among us, as I would be without them. We strike a nice balance and have been able to bridge the language barrier nicely despite the difficulties.

Endurance Village is about two hours, three buses and a gondola ride up a mountain away from where I live at Olympic Village on the coast, which means that I need to wake up very early to make it to work by 9 a.m. But the views of the mountain make the travel and early wake-up-time worth it.

Maybe Russia wasn't prepared to host the Winter Olympics, but they're figuring it out. Russia's Olympic experiment and the anticipation that surrounds the event are demonstrative of the Russian will. It strives towards an international ideal despite domestic inabilities to achieve that ideal. The sacrifices made by individuals are sunk costs on behalf of a greater good. And in this case, since the greater good is international understanding, cooperation, and celebration, I'm okay with the sacrifices I've made here - even all of the anticipation.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog