22 July 2021
On Tuesday 13 July, Member for Warringah, and past Olympian, Zali Steggall shared the Olympic Spirit with almost 1000 Year 10 Catholic Secondary School students in the Diocese of Broken Bay, via a live streamed event: “Careers behind the Olympics”.
A collaborative project between Catholic Schools Broken Bay, Ms Zali Steggall, Mr John Giancarlo, Director of Energy & Technology with the International Olympic Committee and Mr Peter Bambridge, Olympic Sponsorship and Hospitality Director based in New York City. All three guest speakers zoomed given these students are currently undertaking home-schooling due to Covid restrictions in the greater Sydney region.
The focus of the Forum, as the name indicates, was to discuss “Careers behind the Olympics.” as for the 11,000 athletes who will compete in Tokyo there are at least 250,000 people behind the scenes performing an enormous array of support roles to support super human effort.
Mr Danny Casey, Director of Catholic Schools Broken Bay said, “we are so pleased to be be able to bring this event to our students, particularly at this difficult time with the return to home schooling. Given the Olympics just under two weeks away, I am delighted we can share some of the Olympic spirit with our students, via an informative forum. This is all part of our Pathways Program where we guide our students to be the very best they can be through school and beyond in the workforce.”
Jayne Persico, a Pathways and Partnerships Leader at Catholic Schools Broken Bay coordinating the event, introducing these three extraordinary speakers, who were ordinary people when they were 15 or 16 years old, and who tapped into their strengths:
• Mr Peter Bambridge; Olympic Sponsorship and Hospitality Director based in New York City - who always had a passion for PEOPLE,
• Mr John Giancarlo, Director of Games Technology and Energy with the International Olympic Committee, based out of Switzerland, but joined today from Tokyo (John always had an INQUISITIVE MIND and found an avenue to channel that gift.
• And of course, Ms Steggall, and her many talents.
Jayne asked students to dream and connect the dots in their own lives, stating “throughout today’s presentation … remember there’s a strong liklihood that Brisbane will host the Games in 2032 … you will be 26 years of age … you may have completed a degree or a tertiary qualification… you may have been in the workforce for a number of years and if you get that chance to play a role in the Olympics grab it with both hands, it’s a once in lifetime opportunity that changes your life.”