As Sydney Olympic Park Authority (SOPA) senior operations manager, he is responsible for the day-to-day coordination of all activity outside the major venues – everything from security to signage. And that included the State’s largest vaccination centre at Qudos Bank Arena.
Mr Copping said he was fortunate to have worked on two Olympics, on events where they had 106,000 people in the stadium and a million people coming to the Easter show but the vaccination clinic was “the most important event that I’ve ever worked on”.
His work normally involves concerts, sports games and the Sydney Royal Easter Show, but for four months all that excitement was replaced by NSW Health vaccination centres.
His “small role” helped him appreciate the work behind the scenes in the State’s public healthcare system.
“Obviously with the pandemic, time was of the essence,” he said.
“Normally something at Qudos would be weeks and weeks in the planning, but that was sped up so we had to show flexibility with some of the rules and regulations to make sure it could get delivered on time.
“I’ve always said people in the medical profession are dedicated, and now I’ve seen it’s not just the nursing and medical side. What I had not been exposed to in the past was the administration which people take for granted.
“The logistics, the planning, all that has certainly been one of the quickest. It’s remarkable. You can see someone getting a shot in the arm, but what goes on behind that, it’s certainly been an eye-opener.”
Now, however, he’s keen to see Qudos Bank Arena swap syringes for spectators and come back to life with events.
