Ever dreamed of passing the ball to your favourite sports star for them to win an Olympic gold medal? Wondered what it might be like to chauffeur the world’s top athletes or heads of state to Olympic stadiums? Sounds far-fetched? Well, these are just two of the tasks that will be entrusted to volunteers during the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

There will be more than 500 roles to be filled by the 70,000 volunteers selected, from Brazilian and overseas candidates, to help stage the Rio 2016 Games. All will be fundamental to the success of the events, and some will be a little out of the ordinary. For example, needle-workers will be needed to sew the national badges on to judokas’ kimonos, blacksmiths to take care of the horses competing in the equestrian events, and healthcare professionals to collect blood samples for anti-doping tests.

And, of course, Rio 2016 will need a whole army of people with boundless energy to offer guidance to thousands of fans on the streets of the city.

Whatever the task, it will be an opportunity to experience something thrilling, something unforgettable.

“Taking the athletes out on to the field of play was incredible,” said Emily Yates, an English volunteer who assisted stadium staff at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. “I got to soak up the electric atmosphere inside the arenas. You get paid in experience and excitement.”

Roles are classified in nine main categories: customer services, sports, press and communications, operational support, ceremonies production, protocol and languages, healthcare services, technology and transport. When you register as a candidate, you can indicate your preferred categories.

You do not need experience to work in your favourite areas. The selected candidates will receive specific training for the tasks they will carry out. The only requirement is a strong desire to help and make a difference when the competitions begin.

For Monica Dias, an English volunteer who worked in event services at the London 2012 Olympic Games, her best memory is from the first medal ceremony she attended. “When it started, it really gave me the chills and brought tears to my eyes,” she said. “It was fantastic, and I realised then, ‘I am part of the Games.’ And what an honour and what an experience, what a memory that is.” (See more volunteer testimonies in the video below.)

At the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, Russian Vadim Pushkarev, as an experienced anaesthetist, was a multi-tasking volunteer, helping to fill in forms, interpreting, giving directions and acting as a receptionist for patients in need of medical care.

“What most interested me was the possibility of communicating with all kinds of patients as we attended athletes, coaches and employees,” he said. “I was sharing space with people of all ages, from 24 to 66, and varied nationalities, including Russians, Venezuelans and people from Japan.”

Pushkarev intends to travel to Rio de Janeiro in 2016 to be a volunteer, and hopes to take his entire family with him to the first Olympic and Paralympic Games in South America.

What about you? Do you want to help put on the world’s greatest sporting spectacle? All you need is to be at least 18 years old by February 2016 and available to work during the Games. Registration for the Rio 2016 Volunteer Programme is open, click here to sign up.