Glasgow Warriors share valuable volunteer experience with To Be Sport

20 Feb 2024

Having the opportunity to work or volunteer in professional sport is widely regarded as a privilege and for those who do earn that chance it can have a life changing impact.

Nowadays, there is a wide variety of roles that exist in elite sport that use many different skillsets. However, sport does not typically have a traditional corporate structure wrapped around it, meaning a diverse talent pool isn’t always reached, and opportunities are undiscovered.

Recently, Glasgow Warriors teamed up with To Be Sport, who are proactively working towards creating more consistent initiatives to make sports event volunteering more accessible, diverse, and inclusive.

To Be Sport are currently running a programme called To Be Sports Changemakers in partnership with Glasgow Life. Through this programme the two organisations have set out three key deliverables that they are working towards.

- - To offer real life event volunteering experience. With those they recruit getting volunteering at the upcoming World Athletics Indoor Championships Glasgow 2024 at the Emirates Arena.
  - Trialling new research-based volunteer recruitment processes.
  - Working together to best prepare volunteers for working at live events. This is done through training materials, planning, communication, and the sharing of best practice.

Sharing best practice

This third point is where Glasgow Warriors supported To Be Sport’s work.

The Club welcomed four of the To Be Sport Changemakers to experience a match day on Saturday 17 February.

At the BKT United Rugby Championship Origin Round they gleaned valuable information from the Glasgow Warriors’ volunteer team, the SP Energy Networks Scotstoun Squad.

On the night, Changemakers Megan Macleod (pictured below), Eleanor Reilly, Mohamed Hossein Haroon and Kelvin Dzapasi were given a tour of Scotstoun Stadium. The Changemakers were given insight into operational functions, performance resources, and were given hands on experience, joining the volunteer crew at various stations during the evening. These included running the passing challenge, meeting and greeting guests, and collecting charity donations.

At the World Athletics Indoor Championships, Megan will support the medal presentations. Meanwhile Eleanor, Mohamed, and Kelvin (pictured above) will volunteer in athlete support services, including at Scotstoun Stadium.

International Olympic Committee Young Leader

The To Be Sport initiative was created by Corentin Caporal. He is one of 25 International Olympic Committee Young Leaders from the 2021-2024 cohort. To develop the programme, Corentin assessed his own volunteer experience that ultimately led to a career in sport, including at the UEFA Champions League, Roland Garros, and SportAccord.

Corentin said: “We really appreciate Glasgow Warriors opening their doors to the group. For helping them get a feel for a professional sporting event before their first experience as sports event volunteers. This was an important part of the programme and we couldn’t have done it without them. Thank you to the team that took the time to share their knowledge and experience. Also, for the starstruck moment when they met players in the changing room.”