Page 30 - Mercian Eagle 2012

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Maj Dean Canham undeterred from his security estimate by Maria Sharapova
in place. 2 MERCIAN soldiers did exactly as briefed once in place, which meant that when Andy Murray was denied entry for practice as he did not have the correct pass, LOCOG staff realised what they had signed themselves up for and had to get their lines straight too. Certain stars, Maria Sharapova being the best example, found themselves particularly well secured as they made their way around the AELTC, with
a healthy gaggle of alert soldiers always managing to be nearby.
The real responsibility lay with securing the venue’s ‘back of house’ perimeter and gates. The plethora of different identification passes, entry points and rules on prohibited items made this a surprisingly complex task, and it was one which endured 24 hours a day. We stepped up to take on additional responsibilities where we could, or where the profile of the task was deemed just too important to leave to anyone else, such as escorting the Olympic Flame onto Centre Court, protecting the Trophy Room or even guarding the most important aspect of the entire event – the grass.
After the first day of competitive tennis
and its accompanying 27,000 spectators,
it became apparent that a greater level of influence would need to be exerted over the staff and public entry points, manned by G4S. What had become rapidly apparent was their distinct lack of ability to indoctrinate, grip, brief, deploy and manage large numbers of staff quickly and effectively. The lack of effective low-level management in the G4S construct, the level at which we employ our NCOs, mean that they had a willing and basically capable workforce (albeit not in the numbers they would have liked) but which could not be managed properly, particularly in the dynamic fashion that was required. And so we had to step up and take over the reins
A Coy soldier was inspired
somewhat. Again, a level of over-enthusiasm and rigidity had to be curtailed slightly but very quickly we found ourselves with a G4S workforce that was open to an element of militarisation and actually appreciated our control. After one day with a closer hold
on the staff and public entry points we had managed to more than double their efficiency. This was further reinforced by the deployment of two composite companies (one from the Parachute Regiment and another from the Royal Marines, which made for a superb rapport building opportunity!) to backfill the G4S numbers and reinforce the venue’s efficiency.
The venue quickly settled into an efficient routine and the public’s experience, both
of their getting into the venue and of the tennis itself, was an extremely positive
one. Praise of our efforts was forthcoming from every angle, indeed sometimes embarrassingly so, but
it was always welcome
operate professionally and put on a positive face when required.
Many people commented on how stark the difference in our duties must have been for us, having recently returned from Afghanistan. But there were a surprising number of familiar themes. Local residents would complain about newly installed cameras overlooking their property;
VCP’s drew complaints about restricting local peoples’ freedom of movement;
Lots of stagging on for both sentries and watchkeepers; and a somewhat alien force to work alongside who, once you knew them and their ways, gelled well and became one effective team.
In amongst the wrangling of politicians and LOCOG over tickets and empty
seats, many soldiers did get to see some high quality tennis, whether it was on Centre Court or a warm-up court. Great Britain’s Andy Murray winning the Gold
has probably cemented the event a little firmer in the memories of the British public too. Souvenirs abounded at the end of the tournament, some of which, it has to be said, were not intended as such and had to be gracefully returned, but most soldiers came away with something of historical value, whether it was an autograph,
photo, ball from the men’s single final or a Team GB shirt signed by all but one of the athletes.
After Andy Murray’s win and the close- down of Wimbledon as an Olympics venue,
to be recognised for our efforts. The vast majority of that effort, it has to be said, was nowhere near the public eye. Some soldiers spent all their time searching vehicles and guarding unused gates for many hours
Praise of our efforts was forthcoming from every angle, indeed sometimes embarrassingly so...
we redeployed to start again as the Venue Security Force at the Olympic Mountain Biking event, being held at Hadleigh Farm in Essex. Just a two-day task,
and limited to about four hours of searching the public on each, the event drew a relatively
at a time, as well as conducting plenty of other mundane tasks, and saw very little of the public, police and LOCOG praise that was heaped upon us. Aside from the tasks themselves, days were very long and the commute from accommodation that was less than conducive to a good night’s (and certainly day’s) sleep meant that the two weeks were far from glorious. As we would expect though, our soldiers still continued to
simple and relaxed conclusion to our Games. Hot and sunny weather and being located in Colchester Garrison’s Leisure Centre meant that, whilst living conditions were ‘interesting’ with the whole Force sleeping in one gym, there was plenty to keep us occupied.
British hopes in both the men’s and women’s events were a long-shot at best and both proved so on their respective days. But the reverence we experienced at Wimbledon continued and keen cyclist Private Hyland of A (Grenadier) Company was asked to be the man to fire the start to the men’s race.
After our return to Belfast (a 45 minute flight unsurprisingly painstaking at the hands of the RAF!) and some time for reflection,
we cannot deny that our force generation,
the amendment of Summer Leave, the long hours and testing daily routines were indeed fairly painful but, ultimately, we would not have wanted to miss out on playing our part in what was ‘the greatest show on earth’. The deployment on Op Olympics writes another interesting chapter in the Mercian Regiment’s history and what every soldier positively came away with was the ability to say “I was there”.
A Company on centre court AELTC Wimbledon
THE MERCIAN EAGLE