the times | Tuesday July 23 2013
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Business Insight
The countdown begins Every helper and every second counts as Glasgow gears up to welcome the world to the XX Games, writes Ginny Clark
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here may be 365 days until the opening ceremony at Celtic Park, but Glasgow is already immersed in preparations for the XX Commonwealth Games. This is a city renowned for throwing a good party. Around 2.2 million people already visit Glasgow from the rest of the UK and beyond each year, but next summer will be different — around 4500 athletes and 2000 team officials will arrive in Glasgow in early July, followed by thousands of excited spectators. So as the countdown ticks into the final 12 months, organisation moves into the last stages as the city gets set and ready to go for 11 memorable days. Work is already more than 80 per cent complete on the 700 homes at the Athletes’ Village site in Dalmarnock, with 260,000 items of furniture, fittings and equipment also ticked off the shopping list. In terms of general accommodation, Glasgow has 9090 hotel bedrooms within 10 miles of the city centre, and 11,044 if you widen that to 20 miles, with another big hotel also on track to be ready for the Games. “The city’s burgeoning hospitality sector is stepping up a gear as we prepare for the influx of visitors that will come to Glasgow for what will be our showcase year,” said Scott Taylor, chief executive of Glasgow City Marketing Bureau. “Glasgow is very much open for business and our thriving hospitality sector is prepared to meet such demands, with the number and quality of hotels in the city at an alltime high. There are five hotels in the pipeline for the city, which totals approximately 700 extra hotel rooms. Breaking ground at the moment is the Premier Inn at Pacific Quay, which is anticipated being open for the Games.” Of course, that influx of visitors adds to the considerable task surrounding security. Police Scotland say that safety and security, planned together with the organising committee and other Games Partners, including the Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council, is well advanced. Security will be provided by a mix of police officers — including the involvement of the special constabulary and, potentially, cadets — private security and the military, with numbers and roles to be refined as plans develop. The procurement process for private contract security services to deliver stewarding and other roles is also ongoing. “Police Scotland is working with the Games Partners to provide a safe and secure event that will be remembered for years to come,” said Deputy Chief
Constable Steve Allen. He has responsibility for the Commonwealth Games and other major events. “Policing in Scotland has a track record of keeping people safe at large-scale public events and, while this is the single biggest sporting event the country will have witnessed, our planning is progressing well.” Police Scotland are also committed to the Games theme of volunteering and have targeted the significant figure of 2014 as they recruit special constables, while working to establish pilot cadet initiatives involving young people in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee. Of course, whether welcoming the crowds or driving athletes to events, it will be the army of Games volunteers who will be crucial to making 2014 a success. Around 300 ‘frontrunners’ are already involved in interviewing the rest of the volunteers and Valerie Mitchell, Glasgow 2014 head of Games workforce, says they are on target to deliver “15,000 smiling faces”. “There were a record-breaking 50,811 applications for volunteer posts,” she says. “This showed the enthusiasm and passion for the Games, and not just in Scotland, with 35 per cent applying from the rest of the UK and abroad. We’re going to interview around 25,000 in a phased approach. We’ve already sent out about 15,000 invitations and have interviewed almost 7,000. Making the commitment to actually turn up to interview is different from filling in a form, so we were expecting a high attrition rate, but nine out of 10 are turning up, which is fantastic.” The organisers will be making offers from October, subject to January security checks, and the orientation training will begin from March at the Emirates Arena, with role and venue-specific training rolling into July. “It’s the biggest peacetime recruitment drive in Scotland,” adds Mitchell. “I spent a lot of time going up and down from London, working closely with the person
who had the same role as I do at 2012. I learned a lot from that experience, particularly about having a robust communications strategy. We really do have a solid programme here.” Just one element remains to be detailed — who has organised the weather?
‘Nothing will stop me from being there’
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he Commonwealth Games is a very special event for me and I am proud to be among the Ambassadors for Glasgow 2014, writes Sir Chris Hoy. Making sure that people from all walks of life feel inspired to be a part of the Games is a big focus for me now that I have retired from cycling. Getting young people involved in sport is something I’ll always be committed to. I have fantastic memories of competing for Scotland in the Games on three separate occasions, especially winning my first major Championship gold medal at the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games. I may no longer be competing but nothing will stop me from being there next summer. Since Glasgow won the right to host the Games, I have looked forward to this moment for many years. This is one of the world’s greatest sporting
competitions on home soil. The Commonwealth’s best athletes, on the back of remarkable achievements at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, will battle for medal glory across 17 sports and 11 days of competition. The Commonwealth Games has a permanent place in my heart which is why Glasgow 2014 means so much. Winning gold for Scotland at Manchester 2002 and Melbourne 2006 were incredibly emotional moments for me. With passionate home crowds, I predict the athletes competing for Team Scotland at Glasgow 2014 are in for a life-changing experience. The support they will receive is certain to make a positive difference and with around a million tickets up for grabs everyone can join the party.