My Week at Work - Olympic Edition

Diving into the deep end while studying a Bachelor of Sports Media at the University of Canberra, Kathleen Rayment landed a dream job in the Media and PR team with Swimming Australia after completing her internship with the organisation in 2011.

Growing up with a love for sport, she began the degree initially hoping to one day be the host of popular sports news show 'Sports Tonight'. Unfortunately the show was axed not long after she started, but she fell in love with the degree and continued anyway.

She now spends her time travelling around Australia and the globe for events, organising interviews, filming content, writing media releases and updating social media. Kathleen has had the opportunity in her role to meet and work with some of the greatest athletes in the world, including Harry Kewell, Kobe Bryant, Dawn Fraser, Ian Thorpe and John Bertrand.

Having worked for Swimming Australia for the past 5 years, Kathleen believes that the relationship between the media and sports industry has changed dramatically in that short time. Social media has evolved and it is now important for athletes to make media part of their everyday routine. She saw the London 2012 Olympic Games as a game-changer in the way major international sporting events were viewed and consumed.

"Sport is an entertainment product and as a result of the changing relationship both sport and the media have had to make sacrifices. There is a fine line between the media getting the access that they want and athletes' preparation not being disrupted and both should be respectful."

Preparation for major events, including the upcoming Rio Olympics, can take anywhere between a few months and a year to organise. These major events require good planning to ensure maximum exposure of swimming and to take advantage of the attention on the sport.

"We need strong and engaging content to get people familiar with our athletes and make them want to stay a fan even when the Olympics aren't on."

With Rio just around the corner we asked Kathleen to show us what a typical week is like at Swimming Australia.

It's the beginning of a new work week in the Swimming Australia office.  Each Monday I start by planning out the week's content schedule with my colleagues. I'm lucky enough to work with a fantastic team!

My degree at UC was quite practical and required 'on the field' work for a number of assignments. Because of this I was confident in interviewing and speaking to athletes which really helped in my first year at Swimming Australia. We film athletes and coaches in their home states, take photos, write media releases and tell their stories through our campaign.

Some years there is more travel than others, but it is always a lot. You can be away for a month at a time and it does get tiring. Travel is fun, but it also affects relationships and activities back home. Media is also a 24/7 job – as an international sport, even if you don't travel to the event you may be required to write or tweet or cover an event at all hours of the day/night.

I've been fortunate enough to meet some of the greatest athletes in the world. Hearing their stories firsthand and sharing my own with them is so exciting! I feel like I have plenty of tales to tell the grandkids when I'm older. Here I am with the legendary Dawn Fraser.

Personally I think the Olympic Games are certainly changing. The structure and the sports may change but there will always be something that is considered the pinnacle of sport for athletes to aspire to. I think the Olympics are important as they unite the world and are based on the values of Friendship, Respect and Excellence.

One of my managers once told me 'Don't take any shit'. Sport can be a very male dominated workforce and this advice has come in handy a few times. My age and gender doesn't affect my capability to get the job done. I've learnt to believe in myself and in my ability. I'm lucky enough to work in a sport that is a national past-time and a national treasure.