MVP of the Month: Rebecca Van Pooss
How long have you been in the events industry? I have been in the events industry for 16 years, started out as a newly graduated Uni student in 2005.
What do you love most about the mass participation sector? I love that we offer something for everyone right from the Elite end of the scale to First Timers. Seeing people of all ages and abilities being able to take part in mass participation events and achieve their personal goal is really satisfying.
Who are you inspired by in our industry? I was lucky enough to work for and be mentored by Garth Prowd for many years. He was a pioneer in our industry, particularly within triathlon and we all still benefit from his vision. An incredibly inspirational man who started the careers of not only many great event operators but also several of our best Aussie athletes through the events he created.
What is your 'can't live without' piece of technology at an event? My phone! It’s a love hate relationship at times but with that in my pocket I can solve most things and have the information I need at my fingertips.
If you weren’t in Mass participation Events what do you think you would be doing? I’m not sure I’d be good at anything else! I did consider joining the police force before I fell into events.
What’s your favourite event that you have attended or worked at? There’s a few. My favourite event to deliver year on year is Noosa Triathlon. I have had the opportunity to be part of a few one off mega events like the London Olympics, World Triathlon Championship Grand Finals and UCI Road World Championships which are an incredible experience and pretty special.
What do you see is the future of our industry? I think the industry has a bit of rebuilding to do on the other side of COVID, it’s been a really tough 18months which sadly not all events have made it through. The future is bright though. The demand for mass participation events is definitely there, people want to get back to doing what they love. Our industry has a key role to play in bringing people back together, improving health and wellbeing and creating the social connection we’ve not been able to have during COVID.
Favourite App / Book or Podcast: At event time, my favourite apps are all the weather apps!
