If you’ve been a regular race participant or organiser over the last 12 years, there’s a good chance you’ve met FinishTime’s Admin and Operations Manager, Ntombi Makam. Ntombi works across various departments at FinishTime, getting involved in everything from bib packing and admin to working at race registration. We got her to take a quick break from her latest bib packing job to answer a few questions for us.
What part of your job do you love the most?
I love being at registration and watching our hard work make athletes happy at the collection venue. It’s extra exciting because of knowing that, in the next few days, these athletes will transform their bibs and race numbers into great and historic moments in their lives. Meeting people face to face and turning pre-event nerves or confusion into a smile of relief gives me instant satisfaction.
What is something that athletes often don’t realise has happened behind the scenes before they arrive at registration?
There is a huge amount of checking and matching that happens before an athlete even gets to registration. We can be working with thousands of names, bib numbers and timing chips, and every detail needs to be matched correctly. When you’re dealing with 30,000 athletes, that takes a very focused mind because one small mismatch can affect someone’s results.
What people don’t always realise is how many checks and balances we have in place to make sure everything is correct. Our client is the race organiser, but ultimately, our work has a direct impact on every athlete taking part. They’ve trained, they’ve raced and they want to cross that finish line and see their correct FinishTime straight away. Knowing that everything we do behind the scenes contributes to that experience is what makes all the checking worthwhile.
You’re known for being particularly good with athletes at registration. What’s your approach when someone arrives unhappy or frustrated?
Some of the most memorable moments happen when an athlete arrives at registration frustrated or angry, only for us to discover that there has simply been a misunderstanding. I’ve had athletes come in very upset, convinced that something has gone wrong. Once we’ve worked through the problem together, they realise that it wasn’t quite what they thought. The best part is when that same athlete leaves registration with a smile.
For Ntombi, the biggest satisfaction comes from knowing that registration has gone smoothly and that thousands of runners, cyclists, swimmers and triathletes will be crossing a start line without delays. It gives her a sense of pride even from a distance, and it’s the pride she takes in her work that makes us so grateful to have Ntombi on Team FinishTime.