What's in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other word would smell as sweet
- So declares Juliet as she laments the name of her beloved in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
While the most obvious understanding of the name T2 is a shortened version of the words 'Table Tennis', or better still, the common abbreviation 'TT', there is a little more to the name.
"For several years, I’ve always felt that table tennis bodies and organizations in our country operate with the likeness of secret societies. They are rarely known or even heard of by the greater public; they do not have transparency in their operations (and finances); and they do not invest into marketing as much as they should have been."
- GT2TTC Founder and current Chairperson, Mohamed Mansoor
We still have tons of work to do in South Africa for the sport of Table Tennis to have the recognition, rapport, and publicity that it truly deserves.
Frank Ji is one of the pioneers behind the name “T2”, or more specifically the “T2 Diamond” name.
T2 Diamond is a table tennis league which was initiated in conjunction with the ITTF in 2016. It sees the world’s top 16 men and women table tennis players feature in a knock-out competition with a match for the bronze medal in place as well – making it 16 matches in each of the two draws.
In other words - it’s on the lines of the Champions League for table tennis.
Held multiple times in a year in different cities, the T2 Diamond Table Tennis tournament sees the top 16-ranked men and women’s player qualify for the competition, and is played on a single-elimination method.
Frank Ji’s rationale behind making that kind of investment is very simply the belief table tennis hasn’t evolved as much as the world around and despite being a sport which has seen participation from around 300 million people around the world, it hasn’t translated into enough cash to make it a viable career option like some of the other sports.
The strategy behind the proposed name “Gauteng T2”, or more simply “T2”, is to take ‘click bait’ advantage of the already popular footprint created by “T2 Diamond” where any person who attempts to search for “T2” on any search engine, will undoubtedly be confounded with the large social media presence of Table Tennis through T2 Diamond league matches. The name T2 also flows easily on the tongue and adheres more to the trends of abbreviation and ease of referencing.
The hope behind the name is that more and more people will discover this amazing sport and develop a love and attachment to it. It's all about the game!
The hope behind the name is that more and more people will discover this amazing sport and develop a love and attachment to it. It's all about the game!
The fact that you're reading this right now, suggests that the name works. Does it not?
Meet Frank Ji, Special Advisor to the ITTF president
The attention of our youth is demanded by several sources, be it the 1000s of television channels or streaming platforms, the internet, the metaverse, advertising bill boards, trends and influencers.
We cannot afford to have our sports clubs operate like they did in the industrial revolution. Today’s generation expects instant gratification and minimal investment with their precious time and money. For far too long we’ve been stuck in that ‘production line mentality’. A mentality that still exists even in our schooling systems. The vast majority of sports are modelled on the interests of industrialization and in the shadow of it. Consider the way things are organized on factory lines, we expect to upskill by batches, we separate them by age groups. Why is their age even relevant? It’s like the most important thing about them is their ‘date of manufacture’. For as long as I remain chairperson, my focus and emphasis would remain with favouring, developing and above all - encouraging the youth.
You can hold me to that, and perhaps more importantly, you are always welcome to HELP me towards those goals. I’m very approachable (despite my intimidating appearances) Please do not ever hesitate to connect, chat and bounce your ideas off me. We need divergent thinking as opposed to just conformity and creativity. We need Collaboration. We need Accountability. We need Purpose.
We cannot afford to have our sports clubs operate like they did in the industrial revolution. Today’s generation expects instant gratification and minimal investment with their precious time and money. For far too long we’ve been stuck in that ‘production line mentality’. A mentality that still exists even in our schooling systems. The vast majority of sports are modelled on the interests of industrialization and in the shadow of it. Consider the way things are organized on factory lines, we expect to upskill by batches, we separate them by age groups. Why is their age even relevant? It’s like the most important thing about them is their ‘date of manufacture’. For as long as I remain chairperson, my focus and emphasis would remain with favouring, developing and above all - encouraging the youth.
You can hold me to that, and perhaps more importantly, you are always welcome to HELP me towards those goals. I’m very approachable (despite my intimidating appearances) Please do not ever hesitate to connect, chat and bounce your ideas off me. We need divergent thinking as opposed to just conformity and creativity. We need Collaboration. We need Accountability. We need Purpose.
- GT2TTC Founder and current Chairperson, Mohamed Mansoor