Ten Days with the Lithuanian Table-tennis Team

March 7 - Nearly four hundred GDUFS students volunteered at the 49th World Team Table-tennis Championships from February 23 to March 3. Over one hundred of them were assigned as personal contacts to national teams. Each contact was responsible for attending to the various needs of the team members. The GDUFS volunteers prepared extensively before the commencement of the games and devoted a great deal of effort to the events.

There are many wonderful stories to be told about the event and the personal encounters between the contacts and the representatives of national teams from around the world. The following recounts the experience of a GDUFS Russian-major who served as the contact for the Lithuanian table-tennis team.

As a GDUFS student, there are many opportunities for me to work as an interpreter, enabling me to travel and meet all kinds of people from various places. I feel honored to have been a volunteer at the championships. It was the most challenging and, at the same time, most unforgettable interpreting experience that I have ever had.

My main task was to accompany the team members at all times and take responsibility for fulfilling all their needs. I helped them register upon their arrival at the hotel. Over the following seven days I kept the players and coaches informed of all details and updates of the timetable for each event. They were very interested and curious about everything. They kept asking me questions on many aspects of China. I was asked to show them around Guangzhou during the final two days and brief them about the city and our country. This group demonstrated that Lithuanians are very nice and friendly. We talked a lot with each other not only about our personal lives and careers, but also about the people and traditions of our respective countries.

In the line of my duties, language proved to be the biggest challenge for me. Lithuania is now an independent country with Lithuanian as its official language. However Lithuania had been a member of the former Soviet Union until the early 1990s and so the older generation there still speaks mostly Russian.  The Lithuanian team attending the championships consisted of ten members, four of whom were under 30 and could not speak Russian very well. In contrast, the remaining six members could only speak Russian. As a result, I had to communicate with the older members in Russian and with the younger members in English. I had to change my mode of thinking very quickly, which was a challenge to both my oral Russian and English skills.

Interpersonal communication skills were also of great importance. I tried my best to meet the needs of every player and help them settle problems as quickly as possible. There were many sudden changes and emergencies that I had to face. At first I was not used to that type of situation but had to immediately adapt myself to the working environment. I learned how to deal with the pressure by exchanging views with the coaches and other team members.

How time flew. The championships ended and it was time for us to say goodbye. I was deeply moved and could not hold back the tears when I was given several small but meaningful gifts by the Lithuanians. I treasure the time we spent together and will value the friendship between us forever!

Farewell, dear Lithuanian friends!

Photo provided by Linda Yu