Volunteering For The Love Of Football

The Local Organising Committee (LOC) has picked 17,040 volunteers — nearly 2,000 more than Brazil 2014 — from 112 countries.

- Aashin Prasad

All eyes will be on Russia for the next one month as it hosts the FIFA World Cup for the very first time. Irrespective of its own on­field performance, its goal will be to ensure a smooth and hitch­free tournament. To make that happen, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) has picked 17,040 volunteers — nearly 2,000 more than Brazil 2014 — from 112 countries. Among them will be 31 volunteers of Indian origin, 23 men and eight women, who will be performing 10 different volunteer functions across as many host cities.

Richik Sengupta, from spectator services, will be among the volunteers who will be see in action when the tournament kicksoff at the Luzniki Stadium in Moscow on June 14. Richik’s function would involve tending to the requests of spectators, guiding them to their seats and requesting prompt medical help if needed and ensuring that they take home a memorable experience. The 25­yearold is a resident Russian whose family belongs to West Bengal. Pursuing his PhD in Mathematics, his entire education is funded by the Russia State.