In September 1997, the Olympic Coordinating Authority began its drive to recruit around 40,000 volunteers to assist at the Sydney Olympic and Paralympic Games. Three years later, 46, 967 volunteers joined around 33,000 paid staff to form Games Force 2000 - the accredited workforce that provided specialised and general skills for most Games operations. This pen, book of travel vouchers and an accreditation pass are just some of the many items produced for the Games Force team.

The Sydney Olympic and Paralympic Games ran consecutively from 15 September to 29 October 2000. Throughout this period, athletes and Games Force personnel wore accreditation passes that included identification photographs and security codes. Delivered to Australian residents via post, these were validated either at the 'Arrivals and Accreditation Centre' at Sydney Olympic Park or at the 'Uniform Distribution and Accreditation Centre' at Redfern. At the same time, personnel collected their Games Force uniforms, McDonalds meal tickets and twenty travel vouchers for use on private bus lines.

This unused book of twenty travel vouchers was produced for a member of the Games Force team. When traveling by bus, the ticket- holder would write his or her name on the ticket and presented it to the bus driver. Tickets were validated only if the ticket-holder was carrying an accreditation pass and wearing a Games Force uniform.

Marked 'ORTA', this pen is an example of those that were distributed to members of ORTA - the Olympic Road and Transport Authority. Volunteers within this division, including bus drivers and navigators, received supplementary training to prepare them for the changed traffic conditions in Sydney during the Games. Together, this pen, accreditation pass and book of tickets provide a glimpse of the extensive coordination that supported Games Force 2000.

Accreditation passes were designed to hang around the necks of Games Force personnel with identification tags positioned at waist height. Tags featured colour identification photographs and names of Games Force personnel along with precinct and venue codes indicating security access.

This pen, accreditation pass and book of twenty transport vouchers were made for members of Games Force 2000, the group of volunteers and paid staff that provided specialised and general services for the Sydney Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Four distinct types of accreditation passes were used throughout the Sydney Olympic and Paralympic Games: a Games pass for general staff and athletes; a Two-part pass for staff working in a variety of venues; a Day pass to provide temporary access to venues or zones; and an Upgrade pass to provide temporary access during an emergency. Passes were sent to Australian residents via post and were validated either at the 'Arrivals and Accreditation Centre' at Sydney Olympic Park or at the 'Uniform Distribution and Accreditation Centre' at Redfern. This is an unused example of the Games pass.

The books of transport vouchers contained twenty, individually numbered tickets. When traveling by bus, a ticket-holder would write their name in this blank space on the ticket and present this with their accreditation pass to the bus driver. Tickets were validated only if the ticket-holder was carrying an accreditation pass and wearing a Games Force uniform. Though these particular tickets have not been used, they are identical to those that Games Force personnel received before the Games.

Made for and owned by the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and donated to the Powerhouse Museum after the Games.

Accreditation pass, pen, book of transport vouchers, paper/plastic/cotton/metal, Games Force 2000, Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games, made 2000

Collection of Games Force transport material, paper, plastic, cotton, metal. The collection includes a book of transport vouchers, a retractable pen featuring the ORTA (Olympic Roads and Transport Authority) logo, a laminated transport access card and a collection of 28 adhesive vehicle access permits of various colours and sizes indicating vehicle access to various Olympic precincts and venues.

made: 2000

2001/84/582

2000