As one of the few female referees to handle major international tournaments in table tennis, Genevieve Lentz has established herself as Africa’s pride on the global sporting scene. The elegant South African has also become a role model for aspiring table tennis officials across the globe, having officiated at the Olympic Games, World Youth Championships, and the World University Games. In this encounter with Sportsafricana.com, Lentz tells us how table tennis has been her ticket to the world.
Table Tennis made its incursion into Genevieve Lentz’s life quite early. “I started my sporting career by playing school league at primary and high School,” she said.
“In 1999, while I was in my first year at the University of the Western Cape, I joined the local club in my community, Boundary Table Tennis Club in Bonteheuwel, in Cape Town, as well as the University of the Western Cape Table Tennis Team.”
Lentz recalled with infective nostalgia how table tennis made her childhood a special one: “I loved playing sports. My siblings and I would play all sports with the children in our street, and great memories were made. Sports was fun. I was an athlete and at age seven my asthma prevented me from continuing as a runner and my zest for being active led me to Table Tennis. Ironically, I never knew what Table Tennis was.
“I vividly remember the announcement buzzer going off at school, just before the lunch interval and there was a call for anyone that was interested to play Table Tennis. I was quite curious to know what this sport was all about since my siblings and I were only familiar with Wimbledon Tennis. As I walked into the classroom where they played Table Tennis, low and behold, my very strict Class Teacher was the Table Tennis Coach. I hesitated for a minute as I thought this would be a horrible experience but I got to see a more relaxed side of my teacher. She made me fall in love with the Game.
“Obviously, I encouraged my siblings to play Table Tennis as well. I told my sister that she would enjoy Table Tennis more than the Netball that she was playing. My mom bought my youngest sibling a Table Tennis set and this became our weekend fun, knocking on the kitchen table until the wee hours of the morning. And the rest became history!
The umpire part of Lentz’s inspirational career soon followed: “It was at Boundary Table Tennis club that I discovered my passion for umpiring games instead of playing. Although I played club league, I much preferred to umpire. Hence I completed the league examination, provincial examination, and the national table tennis examination to become a professional table tennis umpire. After officiating at all levels of Table Tennis in South Africa, I qualified as an international umpire in 2006. The only female to write the examination among nine men. The world became my oyster and I started umpiring all over the world.”
Lentz’s conquest of the global umpire scene took off from her home continent – Africa. She said: “In 2012, I became the first South African female to obtain Blue Badge Umpire status. Whilst I was at the African Championships in Congo, the African Umpires and Referees trainer the late Bassyouni of Egypt encouraged the African umpires there to do the National Referee Course. Africa had not had an ITTF Referee Course in decades. He arranged for the National Referee Course and Examination to be written in Sudan just before a Championships. I passed the Examination and in 2017, I became the first African female referee in Egypt.”
But then what does it take to be a world-class umpire in Table Tennis? In answer, Lentz stated: “To be the best in officiating you need to stay abreast with the officiating rules. ITTF URC annually updates the umpires’ handbook. One has to be actively involved in officiating in the sport. Similarly to a Table Tennis player, one has to have a passion for officiating and be dedicated.”
However, she added: “Knowing the theory of the rules means very little if you are not officiating. The best experience is collected with lots of exposure to matches, no players, no game, and no championship is ever the same. In honing your officiating skills, you need to be open to constructive criticism and try and constantly improve how you conduct matches.
“In 2010, I was blessed enough to be part of the First Youth Olympics in Singapore and at this Olympics, the ITTF Umpire and Referee Committee (URC) trained young officials from around the world to officiate. It was at this training that I distinctly remembered that presence as an umpire was important. Be present in your match by staying alert and your presence, the way you carry yourself and conduct yourself as an official. Be fair and unbiased in your decision making and players, coaches, and fellow officials will gain respect and admire your integrity.”
Many are the benefits Table Tennis has brought to Lentz and she is grateful for what the sport has done in her life. “My family is proud of the opportunities that table tennis has afforded me. I remember being told that God has blessed me because of my mother’s sacrifices, so she bursts with pride.”
Not surprisingly, therefore, Lentz’s other siblings are also deeply involved in Table Tennis. “Both my siblings are involved in table tennis and are motivated to play and officiate. My youngest sister is the current South African National Defence Force Table Tennis Champion and the second eldest is an International Umpire and player,” she disclosed.
Although Lentz is today a famous umpire, her journey to the top has not been a bed of roses: “To be honest, there have been challenging moments in my career especially since I am female, but I never regret pursuing officiating. I have travelled to three continents and many diverse countries, learning new cultures and building lifetime friendships,” she revealed.
Lentz added: “In general, for women, the world is more difficult. You constantly need to prove that you are as efficient as your male counterparts, to the players, coaches, and other officials so we work twice as hard. This has been the most challenging. In a Championship, it would be to deal with the various personalities.”
However, Lentz does not plead an easy pass for the female gender in the umpire world. “First and foremost, I am as qualified and efficient as my male counterparts. I am as dedicated to a sport that I love and enjoy. I put in just as many hours, as they do, in ensuring that I am the best official that I could possibly be. I execute and complete duties with the same amount of vigour as my male counterparts,” she stressed.
Although she is a star of the umpire world, Lentz is of the view that there is always room to learn and improve at the job “A life lesson learnt in the course of work is that as an official, you never know it all. You need to be teachable. You need to be agile and yet objective,” she observed.
Asked to pick her biggest moment as an umpire thus far, Lentz said: “The greatest moment as an official was when I was selected as Deputy Referee at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. For Africa, this was a milestone it was the first time an African female referee officiated at the Olympics since the inception of the Olympics in 1896.”
Rounding off on the positive impact the sport has had on her life, Lentz said: “Table Tennis has provided me the opportunity to prove that sport does not end with being a player. There are many other ways of actively contributing to the sport by being an official or administrator. “Without a doubt, Table Tennis has opened up the world for me and made it more accessible to me. It has given me opportunities that I only dreamt of before. It has become a way of life and has afforded me the opportunity to build life-long friendships and become an ambassador of the sport.”