Taking a snap with the official mascot for the PyeongChang Paralympics, Bandabi / Credit: Yehyun Shin
Good-bye, Pyeongchang. The Winter Olympics are all over and my journey with two global sports events have come to an end with many memories. Yes, I participated in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics followed by the Paralympics. Working for the Olympics was a lot of fun as I could work together with my friends. As for the Paralympics, the situation was a little different.
My service appointment was sent to me right before the opening of the Paralympics, and I had to run to Gangneung overnight to join the team. As it took place during the semester, not many students volunteered to join the staff. Unlike the Olympics, I could not find anyone from GMUK while I was serving for the Paralympics. Actually, before joining the Paralympics team, I had to make a choice between my responsibilities as a student and my services for an international sports event for physically challenged athletes. They say you cannot eat your cake and have it, too. Therefore, I chose to work for the Paralympics, so I could not attend classes for a couple weeks.
Like I did during the Olympics, I worked as a camera assistant, and this time, I worked with a Chinese cameraman at the Gangneung Curling Center. I was worried because I do not speak Chinese at all, and it was first time speaking with people from China. Our communication tool was English. On my first day of work, I asked the cameraman if it would be alright if I go out and do my job and he replied, “Yes.” Later, I found he was mad at me. At first, I felt embarrassed but on second thought, I realized that we did not understand each other very well. I decided to double check whenever we had to exchange questions and answers. This strategy helped me a lot during the Paralympics and prevented further problems. At first, I had imagined I could not be friends with this man, but our communication and relationship improved rapidly as we tried to understand each other. I learned that even though we do not speak the same language, it does not mean that we cannot work together. We still can make good friends and colleagues. There were people from diverse countries using different languages, but we all became good friends.
When people find out that I worked for both, they ask me, “What’s the difference between the Olympics and Paralympics?” The biggest difference is that at the Paralympics, everything is ‘less’ than the Olympics: less audience, less events, and less attention. Some people do not even know what the Paralympics are. Since I was a camera assistant, I could stay very close to the players during the game. I was able to see their faces, emotional changes, and I could listen to them talking before, during, and after the game. Compared to the Olympics, some of the Paralympic players are older but I could notice their firing passion for the sports. They tried their best, and the results were pretty good, and I felt lucky to observe them and share my time with them in moments of challenges and victories. In the Paralympics, people pay less attention, but players fly higher and their passion exceeds their challenges. I am back at school now, and I am ready to fly higher.
Yehyun Shin | Student Contributor
yshin20@masonlive.gmu.edu
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