Success story: Anne Mielke gets internship at 2012 London Olympics

Areas of Study , London , Marketing Success Stories | May 02, 2012 | Nicole Gesualdo

Most of us will watch the 2012 Games on television, with our minds in London but our rear ends on the living room couch. Anne Mielke (GSB ’14) will be there in person — not as a mere spectator, but as an intern within one of the Olympic venues.

Anne will be working for iLUKA, a U.K.-based specialized agency that creates and manages the experience that people have at major sporting events, such as the Olympics and the World Cup for both soccer and rugby. She can’t tell us which sports venue she’ll be assigned to — security is pretty tight — but we do know that she’ll work as a host to guide visitors and answer their questions. She’ll find out more when she arrives in London for the games, which run from July 25 to August 12.

We hope the position will give her a chance to see one of her favorite events: track and field (Anne is a former sprinter), swimming or gymnastics.

A business administration major with a concentration in marketing — not to mention involvement with the Gabelli Business Side of Sports program, and a specialization in communications and media management — Anne specifically sought a way to get involved with the Olympics. It wasn’t easy. As an American, she ran up against many U.K. regulations that block foreigners from working there. iLUKA, however, went out of the way to make it work. After nine months of waiting and hoping, Anne’s offer came through.

This internship will be a résumé entry that few other business students in the world have. That ought to be especially helpful for Anne, who aspires to work in sports marketing for her home team, the San Francisco Giants. She is happy to take on any role along the way that may give her experience in the sports realm.

“I definitely want to work at a team-level position doing sports marketing,” she said, “but there is a great opportunity to work for larger companies that represent other clients within the sports world. Who knows what the future holds for me. I am just trying to take it one step at a time, and hopefully the end result is good.”

We at Gabelli hope the same. Good luck, Anne, and have a wonderful summer in London!