Living My Olympic Dream

Being part of the Olympic movement has always been a huge passion for me. Three years ago I landed and internship with USA Taekwondo during the summer of 2015. I gained great experience and met alot of people along the way. My boss shared with me her experience working with USA Team Processing at the 2012 London Olympic Games. I was so intrigued with her experience that it became a goal of mine to work for Team USA Team Processing in the future.

One of the most important things I learned while earning my Masters Degree in Sports Administration at Virginia Commonwealth University was "your network is your net worth." My network and previous experiences helped me get this volunteer position at the upcoming Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. After passing my interview and background check, I was excited to begin my position with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).

At the 2018 Winter Olympics, Team USA will consist of 242 athletes. Team Processing is the first step for athletes to receive their official gear. Each athlete receives clothing and items from Ralph Lauren, Nike, OC Tanner, Proctor and Gamble and Swatch. The athletes will also have their headshot pictures taken for their official credentials and learn about Korean culture. The entire process takes 3 hrs and then they will take a 3 hour bus ride to PyeongChang with all their new Olympic gear. These athletes will be representing Team USA in style!

For the past 2 1/2 weeks I have been helping the USOC set up for Team Processing.Last week our Olympians started to influx into South Korea to pick up their gear. My duties were to work one-on-one with different athletes to make sure they had all of their correct Olympic gear and to make sure it fit them right! It's been remarkable to interact with these athletes and to see how excited they are to become Olympians after all their years of hard training! Team Processing has been an unforgettable experience and I am already hoping to be involved again for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo! I am excited to be attending the Opening Ceremony in PyeongChang in the next few days!