Revenge of the Dreamer: Kamo’s Sub-3 Attempt

“The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon is personal for me, and this year I’m coming back to finally run my sub three,” says Kamo Motaung. Why is it personal you ask? Let’s rewind…

An unconventional approach to running

To say Kamo has an unconventional approach to running is an understatement. While newcomers to the sport often preemptively limit themselves saying ‘I can’t possibly run that fast,’ or ‘I can’t run that distance so soon,’ Kamo appears to do quite the opposite with no goal too big, no pace out of his league. “I think the beauty of being a novice is that you just don’t know. You don’t know what is impossible and so you don’t limit yourself,” says Kamo.

And so, naturally, his first races were spent putting these limits to the test. “For example, I remember signing up for Comrades in 2022 only a year after I had started running. I didn’t know a thing at the time and everyone said I was crazy,” says Kamo. “What I did know was that I had to run a qualifying marathon. So I thought to myself ‘what’s an audacious time?’, and settled on 3 hours 30 minutes as the goal.”

Now any experienced runner will tell you that 3:30 for your first ever marathon is insane, but to Kamo who knew no better, it seemed achievable. He set to work following a plan he’d downloaded off the internet. Ultimately, he fell short of the goal, coming in at 3:38, but the closeness fuelled his belief that he could do hard things and run fast times. Comrades itself was a sufferfest to say the least. With low mileage thanks to an injury acquired in the build-up, the aim on the day was simply to survive. The marathons after that followed much the same path as that 3:38 marathon. Big goals, untimely injuries, and unwavering belief despite shortfalls. 

Dreamers keep trying: a motto to live and run by

Kamo has had many races where he’s missed his goal, and it’s these failures more than the successes that have drawn people in and seen him growing a following. “I think failure is relatable,” says Kamo. “It means you dreamed big and set an ambitious goal. If you always comfortably succeed, you’re probably dreaming too small.”

Comrades 2023 was one such race, resulting in a DNF (did not finish) for Kamo, who suffered from severe cramps. “Normally, that kind of failure would have mentally knocked me out for months. But, I decided to post about it on Instagram. I was super vulnerable and shared my experience, and how I was feeling post DNF. The outpouring of support and love from the running community really shifted my perspective,” says Kamo. “I was like wow, you can fail and it’s okay – you just try again. It’s not such a big deal.” Kamo’s catch phrase ‘Dreamers Keep Trying’ was born out of this failure; an allowance to himself to dream these big dreams, but to also be okay when he fell short, knowing that a second chance was never too far away.

Inspired by this external motivation, Kamo got right ‘back on the bus’, a sub-3 hour marathon bus. Added to a WhatsApp group titled just this, he set about training with some friends for the 2023 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon. “At the time, there was absolutely no evidence pointing towards the fact that I could achieve a sub-3. I had a marathon PB of 3:29, and no other indicators – but as you’ve come to know, I love an audacious goal,” explains Kamo. 

Unfortunately, Kamo’s year didn’t pan out as he’d hoped. Plagued by injury once more, he had a shaky build-up and had to re-adjust expectations. Even with these re-adjusted expectations, he described the race as “heartbreaking” where he experienced his worst cramps to date, having to walk and even crawl sections.

Where are we now? A revenge race loading

This is exactly why the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon is personal for Kamo. His belief is strong, and he’s coming for what he calls ‘Revenge of the Dreamer’ to run his sub-3 hour marathon; a goal he’s made no secret of, announcing it proudly on his social media page. “Initially, I was hesitant to make my goal so public, because it comes with a lot of external pressure. But, the ‘Dreamers Keep Trying’ slogan releases me of this pressure. It’s almost like a little clause that says ‘no matter the outcome, as long as you don’t give up, you’ve succeeded’,” explains Kamo.

Stacking bricks, session by session

“I want to get to a place where I am so comfortable with the work that I have put in that the outcome is merely the cherry on top. For example, with the Vaal Marathon earlier this year, my outcome wasn’t what I wanted, and I had a bad day out. But, I was so okay with it because I know that I did absolutely everything I could. My training block was exemplary, and at this stage in my running career, I feel satisfied knowing I had a good input even if I didn’t achieve the desired outcome on the day,” says Kamo, showing his growth in character and acceptance with the fact that running is far from a fair or easy sport. “When setting race targets, I’ve always believed the sweet spot is 80% assurance, 20% doubt. You’re confident you’ll hit your goal, but there’s a touch of tension forcing you to befriend faith,” he says poetically.

“That’s what the bricks are all about” he says, explaining that every session he does in preparation for the marathon gets written on a brick and stacked up to eventually build a wall. “The brick wall is going to be a visual marker for me of all the work that has gone into my Sanlam Cape Town Marathon training block. I will arrive at the start line knowing that this is what I am standing on top of, ready to take on my goal head first,” adds Kamo. And so with a big goal, and a plan to make it happen Kamo is steadily stacking his bricks as race day grows closer and closer. 

You can follow along on Kamo’s journey here. Ready to join this Revenge of the Dreamers? Tell us how you’re preparing to make this race your best race yet?