The Baku 2015 European Games came on my radar in early January when an advert for a ‘sports dietitian’ at the Games was circulated on the Sports Dietitians UK email network. Limited information on the position was included in the description, but nevertheless I sent my CV through and soon after found out I was shortlisted to the last six. After answering some further questioning in early March I found out I had been offered the post alongside another Sports Dietitian from London. It was at this point that it was finally revealed I was going to spend three weeks running the nutrition desk in the athlete village main dining at the inaugural European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan!
With support and understanding from my management at the floodgates then opened – contracts, disclaimers and accreditation applications with full identification verification all had to be submitted straight away. I still felt uncertain on what to expect but signed everything! Before I flew I managed to speak to my EIS performance nutrition colleague, and former employee, Kath Brown who had worked in a similar role at London 2012, which was exceptionally helpful.
On Thursday 28th May I flew overnight from Heathrow with Azer airways on a practically merk new, empty jet! The flight time was only 4 hours 50 mins so not a lot of sleeping occurred – and with a 4 hour time difference to Azerbaijan it was straight into bright sunshine on arrival. After a quick shower at the hotel and then the first of many peculiar hotel breakfast buffets we set straight to work.
What were you actually doing?
The job role was split into two key tasks – ensuring that the ‘nutrition cards’ labelling every hidangan item contained accurate nutritional and allergen information. And then secondly running the nutrition desk where athletes and support staff could obtain sports specific performance nutrition advice. To accurately determine the nutritional composition of the meals being prepared we had to work with the chefs (both British and local) to obtain their top secret recipes. I had to use my GCSE level language skills to link with suppliers across Europe and compile data for over 700 items. It was a mammoth task that had to be completed before the village opened on June 8th.
Once the village opened we had to respond quickly if there was stock shortage leading to an ingredient change. Food could not be served if there wasn’t an accurate card so there was constant pressure to maintain service. This role was pivotal in ensuring anyone attending the European games could be informed about what they were eating across any of the villages and venues. It was particularly essential for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to identify the foods served.
We also developed bespoke athlete resources for enquiries at the helpdesk including a ‘nutrition team’s dish of the day’ poster, factsheets on ‘fuelling in the Baku dining hall’ and ‘menu items without gluten.’
There was a constant flow of enquiries at the desk and it had to be manned 7am-11pm every day. It was fantastic to test all aspects of my performance nutrition knowledge across the 20 sports, with both young and experienced athletes in various languages. It was also great to ‘shout out’ about the amazing work we do at the Institute. A lot of the support staff we spoke to idolise the ‘British systems’ and it was great to highlight that Wales plays a big part of this. Also had to cheer especially loudly for our Welsh athletes performing on the European stage.
Anything else?
At the end of the first day, in a state of delirium, we attempted to walk from the athlete village to the hotel but got distinctly lost. Using initiative we asked local police for advice – one offered to drive us and took us in his own car to the hotel via a treacherous, un-tarmacked back route at least 85mph! First note to self – Azerbaijanis are friendly and helpful but their driving leaves a lot to be desired!!
· The venues were all spectacular – I got to see the Olympic stadium for the opening ceremony where Lady Gaga performed, Bilgah beach for Triathlon and the national gymnastics area.
· We had one afternoon off (well 4 hours) where I managed to venture into the city centre and see beautiful Baku itself – the old city is magical and will be an incredible setting for the next year’s F1 grand prix they are due to hold!
· Water was served from our nutrition desk to Prince Albert of Monaco!
· Bread is sacred in Azerbaijan and cannot be thrown into a bin with other rubbish so a separate bin had to be made available at all waste disposal points.
Felicity Hares is a Performance Nutritionist at the Institute.
@foodbyflick
Felicity Hares is a Performance Nutritionist at the Institute.
@foodbyflick
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