Heathrow, the third busiest airport in the world, will be the main point of entry for London 2012 with around 80 per cent of people travelling to the Games from outside the UK set to pass through its four terminals.

In order to help deal with the influx of people, Heathrow are looking 1,000 Team Heathrow volunteers and have invited local residents who want to be involved to sign up to attend the first selection day on November 12 at the Heathrow Academy in Hounslow.

Volunteers will have the chance to receive a range of London 2012 or Heathrow related rewards and also work at Heathrow on the Queen's Diamond Jubilee which will take place in June next year, just over a month before the Olympic Opening Ceremony.

"This is an exciting time for Great Britain and it is an honour for everyone at Heathrow to be amongst the first to welcome athletes and others to the London 2012 Games," said Colin Matthews, chief executive of British Airports Authority (BAA) who own Heathrow and six other British airports.

"The Olympics and Paralympics will be challenging for us and we are working hard to ensure everything works as smoothly as possible.

"We are inviting enthusiastic volunteers to join our team and provide the best possible reception to our country's many visitors."

Heathrow want volunteers welcoming people to England to give them a great first and last impression of London but they face a huge logistical challenge as August 13, the day after the 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony, which is set to be the busiest in the airport's history.

On that day, the number of bags expected to leave the airport is more than 25 per cent higher than usual peak times with round 15 per cent of the bags likely to be large sporting equipment such as canoes, pole vaults or bikes which cannot be processed through normal baggage systems.

Volunteers will be crucial to helping Heathrow manage the huge addition of people and as well as rewards, Heathrow offer volunteers the opportunity to make new friends, contacts and networks; enhance CVs, build skills and help make the country proud.

The first selection day on November 12, which is only eligible to those who have signed up before the day, will see participants meet a high profile athlete and discover what skills they could bring to the airport.

There will be a further selection day in December this year while leading the recruitment is Joanne John who has competed nationally in the hammer and internationally in the bobsleigh for Team GB.

To sign up for the section day click here. 

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