Rio 2016

Having worked in major events for over 3 years it is clear that the biggest, best and most prestigious event in the sporting world is of course the Olympic Games. My old manager who worked at London 2012 called it the ‘biggest peace time event in history’ and I think he is right.

Tonight is the opening ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and I just want to wish all the athletes, teams and of course the staff who have worked tirelessly over the last few months the very best of luck. The blood, sweat and tears that will have gone into getting this event ready is incredible, trust me I’ve been there! The hardest part about working at such a large is event is actually finding the time to enjoy it and take it all in, so hopefully my friends and colleagues out in Rio manage to at least experience a little bit of the magic in between running around like headless chickens!

The anticipation and run up to the Games has been a little tarnished this year due to the issues with the preparations in Rio, but I have no doubt that once the event starts it will be fantastic. Who knows just yet what records will be broken and how history will be made but you can bet your last dollar that something spectacular is bound to happen – already we have a ‘Refugee’ team competing and some very exciting young athletes who are ready to make their mark. Not to mention legends like Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis-Hill – you just know something special is bound to happen.

So let’s do this, Rio 2016 – it’s your time to shine!! (special shoutout to Team GB, make us proud!)

Green Juice in Glasgow

A little bit of a different post today but.. it's happening.. After almost 25 years of blissful ignorance I have finally succumbed to peer pressure and have decided to try and join the healthy living club.

Up until now I have survived almost exclusively on, to put it politely, garbage. McDonald’s, Pizza and the occasional Subway if I was feeling ‘healthy’!

Unfortunately, as with most people, my metabolism apparently isn’t what it used to be so I am being forced to rethink my diet and exercise and start to eat better and bla bla bla you know the drill! Trust me I'm as bored reading about being healthy as you are. 

Now I am not about to jump straight into a diet exclusively devoted to Kale and quinoa - chocolate is still my best friend. However I am willing to make a few changes. The first of which was introducing ‘green juice’ into my life. Apparently it's healthy. I’m not ready to make my own just yet so I popped into Juice Garden in Glasgow and picked up a ‘5 a day’ juice from their extensive menu of healthy sounding beverages. It had fruit, vegetables and was bright green so it must be healthy, right!?  To be honest it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be – so far so good!

I have also joined (ok re-joined) the gym, have bought some snazzy matching work out gear and booked into some hellish sounding classes. Not sure why I’m not skinny yet!? I’ll let you know how it goes…. In the mean time if anyone has any particular classes they’d recommend please let me know.

So, without further a due, go forth and fitness. No..ok.. but you get the jist!

Throwback - Glasgow 2014!

Today marks 2 years since the opening ceremony of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and what a 2 years they have been! Little did I know back then that working for Glasgow 2014 would shape my career and my life in the way that it has!

Since that day I have gone on to work all over the World, mostly due to the amazing people and connections I met during the Games. I have worked in London, Barbados, Milan, with Miami and Australia also on the cards for 2016/2017 – none of which would ever have happened if I didn’t work at Glasgow 2014.

I owe several life long friendships and experiences to the event and I will never forget the excitement of the night of the opening ceremony when all our hard work was finally shown to the World.

Who knows what I will get up to in the future but for today I am looking back and being very thankful that I had the opportunity to work at such an amazing event with some of the best people I have or ever will meet. Thank you Glasgow 2014!

One night in.. Manchester!

This weekend I made a flying visit to Manchester to catch up with some old friends. I got the train down from Glasgow on Saturday and was home again by Sunday, short but sweet. Like me.. and a lot of the guys we met in town..

I’ve heard that Manchester is infamous for a good night out and I have to agree. It’s similar to Glasgow in terms of places, prices and well, the rain but as I had never been before there were lots of restaurants, bars and clubs I wanted to try.

We intended to go out early and hit a few bars but girls being girls ended up not being ready until quite late so didn’t have time to go to as many as we would’ve liked. We went to The Alchemist for a few cocktails and I was obviously delighted by anything which had dry ice, was set on fire or contained a novelty syringe. What can I say I am easily amused. I’d definitely recommend going here for a cocktail or 2 on a night out, the cocktails ranged from around £7.50 - £10.00 so you wouldn’t want to stay here all night however it’s worth stopping by.

We then went to Bijou nightclub which I now don’t think was the best choice but I still had a great time! It’s more centred towards, how can I put this politely, people who enjoy posing and taking selfies in booths than people like me who love a good dance!  Even so, we had the dance floor practically to ourselves and weren’t afraid to use it. The drinks were quite expensive, similar to London prices so it’s not really worth it if you are just there for a fun night with the girls but if you are looking for a chic modern night and have the money to spend then I’d say give it a go. Next time I go to Manchester I’ll probably try somewhere a little different but in the end we still had a fun night.

On Sunday we went to a cute little coffee shop in Didsbury called Cocoa Cabana where I had the best Hot Chocolate, ever. It's a tiny store but the menu is amazing.. if I lived there I'd go all the time, and would probably develop diabetes. We then went for lunch in a little pub called the George Charles, I would recommend the roast if you're ever in the area, so so good! 

Unfortunately I didn’t have time to explore Manchester as much as I would have liked to however it’s always fun to visit a new city, even if it’s just for one night. Beats staying in, right!? Where would you recommend if I visit the city again!?