4 months ago
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THERE’S only one thing stranger than some of the jobs at Paris 2024.
And that’s some of the Olympic jobs that you didn’t even know were jobs!
AFP
One volunteer was seen hiding in a hedgeAnd if you thought there was nowhere to hide working under such a massive global spotlight, think again…
There are in fact horsey helpers who have branched out from assisting in dressage sports to HIDING IN HEDGES!
There’s also the miracle of working on water – with a rake in a lake.
And how about the “job” that fans made a point of falling in love with – retrieving javelins with remote-control cars.
About 45,000 volunteers were recruited for this summer’s Olympics in and around the French capital, along with paid staff.
And what is an everyday task in normal life might just be of the most surprising roles amongst such elite performers.
A viewer shared a picture of a pool-side observer carrying safety gear at the Paris Aquatic Centre as the world’s fastest swimmers zoomed past.
Alongside the pic, the fan wrote: “If you’re ever feeling useless, just remember there’s a lifeguard at the Olympics.”
Could you do any of these jobs at the Olympics? 
There's plenty of weird and wonderful ways to get involved in the #Paris2024 action! #bbcolympics #Olympics pic.twitter.com/vPNgARxfIA
OLYMPICS FREE BETS – SIGN UP OFFERS AND DEAL FOR PARIS 2024
Of course, even the best of the best can have accidents or medical emergencies.
But it was still a quirky post that tickled armchair viewers.
Another fan responded to that photo with their own personal employment highlight from the Olympics.
Next to a snap of a man bobbing a camera up and down on a tripod, he wrote: “The best was the cameraman filming the trampoline.”
However, if it went to a vote, there would be only one winner for top task at Paris 2024.
That’s the role of taking charge of tiny “javelin jeeps” – the remote control vehicles used for collecting one of the most dangerous pieces of equipment at the Olympics.
Javelin-fetching could hardly have been more unglamorous in the past.
It was pretty much as written on the tin – running out onto the field to pull the spears from the ground, then dashing back to safety with them.
Now the process has been revamped to become “the best job in the world”.
As one viewer put it: “I don’t want money, I don’t want fame.
“I just want to be one of the two blokes whose job it is to sit on chairs in the Stade de France and drive the remote control cars back and forth collecting the Javelins after they’ve been thrown at the Olympics.”
It does sound a bit seasonal – but might be worth asking at the job centre…
Other wacky roles have been outlined with joy by the volunteers doing them.
They include vacuuming the athletics area, staying out of sight during horse-riding events and raking the water for rowers.
Three such workers explained their jobs to the BBC.
Vincent Haennel said: “My job is to vacuum the field of play at the Olympic Games.
There’s a mini-army of helpers who vacuum the ‘field of play’
The idea of taking charge of this javelin-fetcher has enchanted sports-loversAFP
Ben, who is a rower himself, helps keep the lake in top nick“I really love this job. To be on the field of play and see the Olympic Games – it’s a dream.”
A woman called “Carole” then revealed her task is to be the exact opposite of the “mane” attraction during equine events.
She said: “I moved to dressage sports and then I hide in hedges.
“When you start, you’re stressed and then it’s more cool.
“I have my colleague, who also hides. We cheer for each other!”
Carole’s job is so discreet she’s not even sure if family and friends have spotted her at work.
She said: “I think they may have seen me but I’m not sure because we’re only little on the screens!”
That leaves one wet ‘n wonderful job, as described by “Ben”.
The River Seine has caused much controversy with question marks over its cleanliness.
But when it comes to keeping it looking good, on the surface at least, Ben could be your man.
He said: “I clean the lake with my rake.
“I row in my club. I’m happy to be a volunteer in the Olympic Games.”
All these eccentric jobs in the murky backwaters of Paris… it seems the trick is to be Seine but not heard!
Paris Olympics with 300k condoms
Nearly 15,000 residents – around 10,500 of which are athletes – will be cramming into the Olympic village between July 26 and August 11.
To ensure the athletes feel at home, a number of provisions have been made by organisers.
One of these is the stocking of some 300,000 condoms, in theory enough for around two every day during the run of the Games.
A number of Olympic athletes have opened the door on their steamy lives behind-the-scenes when in camp, including huge sex orgies and parties.
London 2012 had claimed the title of “the raunchiest Games ever”, but the 150,000 condoms ordered paled in comparison to the 450,000 ordered for the Rio Games four years later.
Condoms have been laid on by organisers at every game since Seoul 1988, when it they were used to spread awareness of HIV and AIDS.
Even with an intimacy ban at Tokyo 2020 due to Covid-19, some 150,000 johnnies were handed out.
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