The Lausanne 2020 Youth Olympic Village furnished in just one weekend by 850 volunteers!
On Friday 1 November, from 7 am, 850 volunteers were gathered at the Vortex to take part in the furnishing of the building which had been inaugurated on the previous day. Thanks to the help of 200 ECA employees, as well as volunteers from Retraites Populaires, the BCV and the IOC, the Youth Olympic Village was prepared for the arrival of the 1'700 athletes and their coached in just one weekend.
On the day following the inauguration of the Vortex, the furnishing of the building began with the help of 850 volunteers. Supervised by 50 coaches provided by IKEA, a partner of Lausanne 2020, the volunteers set about assembling the Swedish brand's furniture to equip over 900 rooms. The entire building was embraced by the spirit of Lausanne 2020 thanks to the volunteers' positive energy.
Since the 21st of October, a large team had been working to distribute the 26'000 packs of furniture throughout the building - a total of 125 tons of material. This preparation greatly facilitated the furnishing of the Vortex over the weekend and was enabled by the help of the apprentices of login Swiss Railways, staff of the Orif from Morges, the Lausanne Fire Brigade, and volunteers of Lausanne 2020.
In the late afternoon on Friday, several simulations of the building's functionality in full occupancy were successfully completed. The assembly of furniture continued into the night after a dinner organised by the University of Lausanne. By Sunday, the entire building's rooms had been successfully furnished.
Ian Logan, CEO of Lausanne 2020: "The Lausanne Olympic Village, of which Vortex will be the central venue, is coming to life and is preparing to welcome the young athletes and their companions in January. It is extraordinary to see the enthusiasm and commitment generated by this project, since its inception only two years ago. The passion of all these local actors allows us to create exceptional conditions for the athletes who will join us in January. Thank you to all the volunteers and partners who joined forces with the Lausanne 2020 teams this weekend for their invaluable help!"
Jessica Anderen, CEO IKEA Switzerland: "It's been great to see the energy put into getting the Vortex building furbished last weekend, as well as the common efforts done by our co-workers. We are glad to be part of this project and to provide Lausanne 2020 with our bedroom furniture to make sure we support a great night sleep
About Lausanne 2020
The Lausanne 2020 Youth Olympic Games will take place from 9 to 22 January 2020 with 1,880 athletes (15-18 years old) from more than 70 countries. The competitions will take place in the cantons of Vaud (Lausanne, La Vallée de Joux, Leysin, les Diablerets, Villars), Valais (Champéry), Grisons (St. Moritz) and neighbouring France (Les Rousses, Les Tuffes stadium).