The Torino Olympics have drawn together fans from around the world in a rollercoaster of patriotism and competitive spirit. Although most people’s Olympic indulgence has taken place in living rooms and sports bars, one ISU student has had a different, much more hands-on, experience.

Shannon Stearns, sophomore in Spanish, is studying abroad in Italy and stumbled on the opportunity to be a volunteer for the U.S. Olympic Team.

“I got to do something called team processing, which is where the athletes and staff come into Torino before the Olympics and we hand out all their Team USA clothing and accessories,” Stearns said. “I met most of the U.S. team handing out their outfits for the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as for the award ceremonies.”

Stearns said Torino has overflowed with tourists and fans during the past few weeks, who pack the streets, hoping to catch a glimpse of athletes and enjoying Olympic festivities.

“[Torino] is very crazy right now. The city has gotten so packed that it’s much harder to get around,” she said. “The medal ceremonies happen each night in Piazza Castello alongside concerts ranging from Jamiroquai to Ricky Martin to orchestra ensembles.”

She said tickets to the medal ceremonies are free, but limited in number, so they are extremely hard to get ahold of. Stearns attended many of the snowboarding events, including the men’s halfpipe.

“After watching the men’s halfpipe in Bardonecchia, I attended the medal ceremony and saw Kelly Clarkson perform. Between the medals and the concert, there are fireworks every night over the Piazza that light up the entire sky,” she said.

Special events happen frequently, from the filming of NBC’s “Today Show” to local retail specials.

“There was a Saturday night called ‘White Night’ where all of the stores downtown stayed open until 3 or 4 in the morning,” she said. “The streets were packed. You literally could not move, but everybody was in a good mood so it was quite a sight to see.”

She said the streets were so packed that buses could not get through the crowds, and at random times, people would start yelling in celebration and the crowd would join in for no reason.

“It was so fun,” Stearns said.

Stearns plans on attending more events throughout the duration of the games, and she said that some of them are fairly difficult to get to.

“Some of the events are actually about two hours away out in the mountains, while others like figure skating and speed skating are right next door. The skating events are held at Palovela, which is right next door to my school,” she said.

Stearns said having Olympic events taking place close is a blast, but it can also be a hassle.

“There’s so much security around here that we have to have ID cards to get into our building, since it’s so close to the skating venue,” she said.

Friends of Stearns at Iowa State are excited, and a bit jealous, of her involvement with the Olympics.

“I think study abroad is cool enough as it is. The fact that she’s working with Team USA just makes it that much cooler,” said Daniel Jorgensen, senior in materials engineering and friend of Stearns. “I hope she gets a chance to see curling. I’ve got to say it’s my favorite sport.”

Kristin Stewart, senior in performing arts and another friend of Stearns, said she wishes she could be in Italy with her.

“I definitely wish I could be there. I think that being in that atmosphere supporting my country would be awesome,” she said.