Feature: Dual-Olympic volunteer logs experience making friendship happen

BEIJING, Feb. 14 (Xinhua) -- For 49 days, Ju Yang filled the pages of her diary with her reflections and insight on what it was like to be a volunteer at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games.

Ju was assigned to be a translator for the test events at the Yanqing competition zone. At the end of each day, she jotted down the memorable moments from her time in the closed-loop hotel for overseas participants. She said she would cherish the experience for the rest of her life.

The 34-year-old, however, is no stranger to the Olympics.

In 2006, when she was 18, she began a degree program at Beijing Forestry University; at the same time, volunteers were being recruited for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. She did not hesitate to sign up.

"Although I was in junior high school when Beijing won the bid for the Olympic Games in 2001, I felt a sense of national pride and hoped that I could contribute to the country," Ju said. "The Olympic Games are really close to me, and I am so lucky to have these opportunities," she added.

During the Beijing 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Ju was a translator to the audience at the field hockey venue.

"All the volunteers were so warm and hospitable. Even fatigue could not dampen our enthusiasm," recalled Ju.

At the end of 2021, Ju, by now an employee of the education commission of Beijing's Yanqing District, once again became an Olympic volunteer, this time for the Winter Games.

With more experience under her belt than a decade ago, Ju now has a deeper understanding of the significance of the Olympics and the role of volunteers. She sees the Olympics as an opportunity for friendship and unity.

"I just concentrated on finishing the translation task in 2008, but now I realize that the Winter Olympic Games represent an opportunity to promote mutual understanding and friendship between people of different countries. As volunteers, we have more opportunities to communicate with foreigners. We have come 'together for a shared future," Ju said.

It was this realisation that inspired her to start her diary.

In one entry, Ju recalls that she had learned that some Canadian athletes were huge fans of Bing Dwen Dwen, the mascot for the Beijing Winter Olympics, she researched the mascot's design and backstory overnight and was able to share her new-found knowledge with the competitors the next day.

"The first phase of testing events came to an end. Today, I borrowed pencils, erasers and crayons from the hotel reception to draw a Bing Dwen Dwen for the Canadian athletes. Worried I might make a mistake, it took me about eight hours to complete. I am satisfied that the drawing conveys kindness and friendship, and I hope the athletes will like it," she wrote in her diary on Oct. 25, 2021.

Ju also drew an olive branch above the mascot, which represents peace and friendship. "I saw smiles and excitement on their face when they received my gift. At that moment, I realized I had not only performed my duty as an Olympic volunteer but also developed a bridge between the hearts of people speaking different languages," read Ju's diary.

Volunteers are dynamic messengers of culture, which means they must invest their feelings and enthusiasm in cultural communication, Ju said.