A welcoming committee of volunteers greeted athletes from Trinidad and Tobago as they arrived in Cardiff this week for their pre-Olympic training camp.
The team, who applied to be Cardiff Host Council Ambassadors through Sport Cardiff, have been helping to distribute the official Olympic uniforms at the Vale Resort near Cardiff.
People of all ages from across Wales have got involved in the Cardiff Host Council Ambassador programme.
Twenty-eight year old Tulshi a volunteer from Cardiff said: “When I heard that there was an opportunity to help with the Olympics I jumped at the chance. It’s been a fantastic experience to meet world-class athletes from Trinidad and Tobago and see what goes on behind the scenes. I can’t wait to see them compete. With over 400 boxes of uniform to organise it has been a pretty big task but an exciting one.”
The team of volunteers from Sport Cardiff were assisted on Tuesday by two student volunteers from Bangor University: Alexis and Dern, from Trinidad, heard the team would be training in Cardiff and got in touch to find out if they could help. They travelled for over five hours to help unpack the uniform ready for distribution.
Members of the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee, who arrived in Cardiff on 9 July, have been busy preparing for the arrival of their athletes: meeting Welsh government officials, arranging transportation, liaising with hotel staff and organising the uniforms.
Annette Knott, Chef de Mission and Vice President of the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee said: “This is the first time the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee have held a holding camp. As the team has grown bigger it made sense to travel to the UK ahead of the Games to ensure that our athletes have time to adapt to the climate. The UK has a tendency to be a bit wet and cold, so the longer our team are here the more opportunity they have to adapt.”
When asked why the team chose to come to Wales, Mrs Knott said: “We [The TTOC] needed to find a quiet location without too many distractions. Hence Wales, rather than London. This is the perfect setting; it is quiet for the team and enables them to stay focused. The people are wonderful. Everyone has been so helpful; bending over backwards for us.”
On 25 July the Trinidad and Tobago team will decamp to the Olympic Village in London. Until then the athletes will still be training hard. There is no rest for those competing in the athletics. Once they have received their kit they will be preparing for a pre-Games athletics meet in Cardiff on 18 July. Competitors from over 30 countries will be taking part in the event which helps keep individuals focused to keep their athletic edge.
By Jenna Hopkinson
Twitter: @JennaHoppy