The Olympic Games are the pinnacle of international sport and the focus of world media attention. This Autumn, the eyes of the world were on Sydney, Australia. The organisers of the Sydney 2000 Olympics commissioned Det Norske Veritas to prepare Venue-Specific Safety Management Plans for a number of events and facilities.
Safety Management Plans were to guide staff who were setting up each venue to identify safety hazards. Without them, the focus of the management team could be solely on the event, and important safety issues could be overlooked.
The events and facilities covered included the marathon, triathlon, road cycling, sailing, football, and beach volleyball. Sydney Olympic Park Entertainment Centre, Darling Harbour and the Press and Broadcasting Centres were also subject to the plans.
Many of the events were held in public places in Sydney, including swimming in Sydney Harbour as part of the triathlon, the marathon through the streets of Sydney and the beach volleyball on Bondi Beach. Thousands of competitors, as well as spectators, took part over the 19 days of the Games.
The DNV team in Sydney worked closely with each venue management team to prepare safety plans specific to the needs of each event. Workshops were held to identify hazards and develop management strategies to minimise the risks.
Unexpected risks
Many hazards were common for all the venues, such as cables that could trip passers-by or could be exposed to damage from scaffolding for TV cameras or banks of temporary seating. For the triathlon, the identified hazards included such diverse items as:
- Golf carts used by officials, which could be operated at unsafe speeds and thus required speed governors;
- The need for Material Safety Data Sheets to be available at appropriate locations for any dangerous or toxic materials;
- The need for equipment and procedures for water based-accidents (including staff or spectators falling into the harbour);
- The management of risk from marine life in the harbour, from sharks to sewage.
For the beach volleyball, it was essential to check the sand daily for foreign objects such as broken glass and other sharp items. Other venues had their own specific hazards.
In each plan, four stages were identified: design, bump-in, competition and bump-out. Bump-in was the final preparation for competition, which included erection of temporary barricades, portable toilet facilities, food outlets and marshalling areas. Bump-out was the removal of such facilities.
Safety audits
Media focus was naturally on the competitors, but attention had to be paid to the safety of the public and games officials before, during and after the competition. DNV designed the VSMPs to include photographs of typical safety hazards identified during trial events held in the months before the Olympics. These were an easily remembered prompt for the venue team when checking for hazards at the sites. Audits of the sites were carried out at all phases of the operation, and daily during competition. The presentation of the VSMPs, with photographs and short descriptions of the hazards to watch out for, was recognised by the venue management teams as an excellent method of
transferring essential information to busy people who would not have the time to read a large manual.
The safety management team for the Sydney Games recognised that these VSMPs were an essential tool to manage the risks to the Games, and to make them safe for everybody. DNV contributed through assisting in the management of hazards that could impact on the life and health of the competitors, spectators, officials and the media.
In the event, it is acknowledged worldwide that these Year 2000 Olympics were among the most successful ever held.