Ready for Rio: Monique Allain working for Team Canada

In just a few weeks athletes, coaches and media will descend on Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Olympic Games and Monique Allain is thrilled to be a part of that crowd. 

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Allain, the principal at Gagetown School, is one of two volunteer concierges travelling with Team Canada to Brazil for her fifth Olympic experience.   

"There's two of us and we're pretty well available 24/7," Allain said. 

 It's a lot like being a triage nurse, she said.

"It's a matter of setting priorities ... we tend to be the first point of contact. If an athlete, coach or manager has an issue they would come to us and we would problem-solve with them," said Allain. 

And the problems are varied — from finding a piece of forgotten equipment to being a supportive listener and sounding board to the athletes and coaches who are under tremendous pressure.

That's where her PhD in sports psychology and counselling comes in handy, she says. 

Information Morning - Fredericton11:26Rio Bound

Monique Allain is set for her fifth Olympic Games. Allain is heading to Rio next month to work on the mission team for Team Canada.

"It's just being that quiet listener ... it's just a matter of going for a walk with the athletes or coaches and just bringing down that pressure, because there's lots of pressure to perform."

Allain has been to four previous Olympic Games — Athens, Beijing, Vancouver and Sochi — and says her strangest experience as concierge happened in Russia in 2014.

"We had maintenance people coming and wanting to work in specific rooms [while the athletes were sleeping] and doing their pre-competitive routine," she said. "So they were finding issues to say, 'We have to go in the room.'"

It appeared to be a deliberate attempt to disrupt the athletes and Allain said the Russian workers had to be told they could not disturb the athletes.

"I did learn a few words in Russian ... [but] I can't repeat them," Allain laughed.

One thing she says she is not unduly worried about is the Zika virus. The top-ranked golfer in the world, Jason Day, recently announced he was pulling out of Rio due to concerns over the virus.

Allain said she's been briefed on Zika. 

 "We're told how to possibly prevent it," and given mosquito repellant. However, she says some athletes and members of the mission understandably have decided not to go.

"One [of these people] is pregnant, so that makes sense," she said.

Allain leaves July 22 for Rio and hopes to bring back some great stories to share with the students at her K-8 school.

"It's the Olympic values and we talk about those in school — the friendship, excellence and respect and how they can incorporate that in their own lives."