Josh, 21, is in his third and final year of a Bachelor of Communication at the University of Newcastle and is one of only 30 students selected to work on a voluntary basis at the games.

He will have a primary role of interviewing competitors and working as a ‘flash quote’ reporter, gathering information from competitors and providing it quickly and accurately to journalists.

He has been preparing for his role at the Olympics at the University of Newcastle with the 30 students selected being given quizzes every two to three weeks and also being briefed on what to expect during their time in Beijing.

It was also advised that students take Mandarin lessons and Josh will go armed with one key phrase of “nǐ huì shuō yīng yǔ má” (Do you speak English?) which will surely be his most used phrase during his time in Beijing.

Beijing Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (BOCOG) officials oversaw the testing of 44 students all vying to win a placement at the world’s most prestigious sporting event. The students were interviewed, tested for audio-visual comprehension and recollection and gave oral presentations that evaluated communication skills.

BOCOG invited communication students at the university to work with the international media contingent at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games after University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Nicholas Saunders, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with BOCOG last year to secure the arrangement.

Only selected universities across the world have been invited to participate with the University of Newcastle being the only tertiary institution in NSW selected to send students to work at the Olympics.

Josh flew out of Australia on Wednesday morning after a couple of days frantic packing. He said the first week will be spent attending functions and events and possibly more training before the Games kick off on August 8. He will be in Beijing a total of eight weeks, staying at the Beijing Foreign Studies University, before returning back home and to reality.

After Josh completes his University degree he hopes to find work in print media in the Newcastle area.