10. The Dreamer – Janet Welham, Race Director, Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, 51

In their teenage years, Elana Meyer and Janet Welham were fierce competitors: Meyer dominated on the road, and Welham had the edge in cross-country events. But at age 20 – as the prospect of international competition dwindled, during the isolation years – Welham went into the business of business; while Meyer continued with the business of running. Fast forward to 2013, and the two combined their passion for running to start Endurocad – an academy aimed at helping build future marathon stars in South Africa.
And it was Endurocad that eventually led to Welham and Meyer’s involvement in South Africa’s fastest-growing marathon – the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon – after they approached former Springbok rugby captain Francois Pienaar for funding for their academy.

“We didn’t get the funding – but it led to a discussion about the Cape Town Marathon, and how we could turn it into Africa’s major,” Welham remembers.

Meyer and Pienaar used their high profiles to get buy-in from the local federation at Western Province Athletics and Athletics South Africa, and much-needed funding from sponsors such as title-holder Sanlam.

“We sold the dream; and the dream was to put Africa on the marathon-running map. We wanted to use that to leverage change, get everyone involved and ensure that we got buy-in. It was about making Cape Town both South Africa’s and Africa’s big-city marathon.”

This year they maxed out the marathon field, at 8 000 (along with 12 000 in the 10km), and look set to continue growing in 2017 – despite a running culture rooted in ultras.

“We had to change the culture of running in South Africa. We had to buck the trend, because ultra running is very popular. But it’s not a case of either/or… it’s about creating space for both.”

They’ve concentrated on encouraging half-marathon runners to up their distance to take on a marathon, while also focusing on the global city-marathon hype.

Currently the CT Marathon is an IAAF Silver Label event, and hopes are that the race will be upgraded to Gold Label status for 2017.

“Being a marathon, we get to compare ourselves to other marathons around the world. The Sydney Marathon was held on the same day as ours, and was a Gold Label event. But they had just 4 500 finishers, and their winning time was three minutes slower than ours… So we can see that we compare quite nicely against other international marathons.”

Whether the CT Marathon will reach the 35 000-plus numbers seen in cities like London, New York, Berlin, Tokyo and Paris remains to be seen; understandably, Welham is cautious.

“I think we would look to cap the marathon at 15 to 20 000 within the next three years, but that depends on the logistics and the capability of the route to handle numbers like that. Could we go bigger? I guess anything’s possible – but we’re not thinking like that yet.”

Perhaps one of the stand-out aspects of the CT Marathon has been its focus on environmental impact. In 2015 the event was declared carbon neutral; and in 2016, climate neutral.

“It’s a complicated process, that looks at everything from water sachets to driving to meetings to buying carbon credits on the stock exchange,” Welham says. “But it’s something we’re extremely proud of.”
With lots of coaching and running-development workshops happening behind the scenes, Welham and her team are clearly dedicated to more than just presenting a world-class race each year: for them, the dream is also the legacy each event leaves behind.

“The reward for all of this will come in the years ahead,” Welham says. “It will come when we are recognised as part of the world’s major series.”

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