Simultaneous Interpretation is no curling match

First of all, let me say I have nothing against curling. I think people who do it must be very talented and work very hard to be good at their sport.

 

That being said, I think I'd have a better chance of being a curler than being a simultaneous intepreter. When I was in college, I took Spanish translation classes and these classes mostly focused on the art and skill of written translation. However, to get us a feel for what intepreters do and to engrain in the students that interpreters and translators are not the same, our professors let us practice doing simultaneous interpretation.

 

After I went through that, I realized that I could never be an interpreter. It was one of the hardest things I've ever done and I gained a new respect for people who could sit down and concentrate to such a degree that they could interpret somebody else speaking in nearly real time.

 

Not only do interpreters have to be able to multi-task efficiently, they have to be walking encyclopedias that are not phased by anything they come across, because if they do, they'll be behind the speaker and it'll it be tough to catch up. Interpreters also have to be able to work with audio equipment and not let it various intricacies distract them.

 

Most of the time interpreters work in tandem, and because it's such a tiring and draining job, they have to rely on their partner to take over. But, while an intepreter is not interpreting, he/she is helping the other person, looking up terms that might be unknown, and helping to deal with any technical issues that might arise.

 

So while I love translating and think I'm decent at it, I could never be an interpreter and would rather go one-on-one against Maria Sharapova on the tennis court.

 

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