How education support is helping to reach dreams
For most teenagers an athletics competition is a test of nerves and preparation. For 17‑year‑old Marlon Kayster from a farming community in Porterville in the Western Cape, it became a moment he was noticed far beyond the track. At the Athletics South Africa All Age Groups Championships held in Germiston on 26 March 2026, the Grade 11 learner produced a 100m sprint time that left officials, coaches and spectators in awe as he crossed the line in 10.31 seconds. The time made him the fastest under‑18 sprinter in South Africa, and currently the fastest young man in the world for his age group.
The performance has opened doors to international competition. Marlon has been selected for the World Wide Scholarships (WWS) Western Cape Schools Athletics Tour, where he will compete in Italy and Sweden during June and July against some of the world’s top young athletes. He has also qualified to represent South Africa at the Under-20 AAU Junior Olympic Games in the United States in August.
Behind Marlon’s world-leading run lies a quieter story of family commitment, long hours of training and access to education made possible through support from the KAL Trust, an employee benefit programme of the KAL Group, a JSE-listed diversified agri, fuel and lifestyle retailer. Marlon is the son of Wilbert Kayster, a grain operations employee at the Group’s Agrimark Grain Piketberg silo. Financial assistance from the Trust has helped the family secure schooling, accommodation and sporting essentials that have allowed Marlon to focus on both his studies and his development as an elite athlete.
Wilbert Kayster, at the Agrimark Piketberg Grain silo.
“I was very emotional,” Marlon recalls of his world-lead performance. “I know how much hard work went into it, and when it finally paid off, it meant a lot.” Despite the global attention the performance attracted, he remains understated about his achievement. “For me, it felt very normal. I just did what I trained to do.” Marlon’s journey has been shaped by trade-offs and routine. On a typical day, he balances schoolwork with afternoon training sessions that run well into the evening, followed by competitions during the athletics season. “There is a lot of discipline involved,” he says.
As an athlete, Marlon competes for Boland Athletics, representing the province at national championships while continuing his schooling at Porterville High School. The school environment, he believes, has played an important role in his development. “We take part in strong competitions, and academically everything is also very good,” he says.
For Wilbert Kayster, applying to the KAL Trust was about opening doors he otherwise could not. “I applied to the KAL Trust because I wanted to give my son a real chance to succeed,” he explains. “We could see Marlon’s potential from a young age, but without the right education and support, it would have been very difficult. Porterville High School offered an environment where he could grow academically while pursuing his sporting interests, but I couldn’t afford the costs. The Trust made it possible, and it changed everything for us.”
Since Grade 8, the Trust has provided financial assistance towards Marlon’s school fees, with the most recent support in January 2026 contributing to tuition, hostel accommodation, school uniform and sports kit. According to Marlon, the impact has been felt across his entire family. “It helps my parents and gives us opportunities we would not have had otherwise,” he says.
Marlon Kayster in action.
A central figure in Marlon’s development has been his long‑time coach, Jacobus Wes, who began coaching him at the age of 11. Wes describes Marlon as a focused and grounded athlete who has grown steadily over time.
“He knows what he wants and what he wants to achieve,” Wes says. “He is ambitious, but he also works very hard. What stands out for me is not only his talent as an athlete, but his character. He has developed as a person, and that is just as important.”
Wes believes Marlon’s journey is still unfolding. “This is a long road,” he says. “If he keeps the attitude he has now and continues believing in his abilities, he can go very far.”
For Marlon, his motivation remains close to home. When asked who inspires him most, his answer is immediate. “My dad,” he beams.
Established in 2011, the KAL Trust supports permanent employees of the KAL Group and their dependants through targeted financial assistance, with a strong focus on education, housing, and sport and cultural development. Guided by KAL Group’s purpose of leaving its stakeholders better off, the Trust seeks to create meaningful opportunities that can shape futures over the long term. By investing in people and their potential, the impact reaches far beyond a single individual, strengthening families, uplifting communities. Since inception, the Trust has supported nearly 2 000 beneficiaries, with more than R20 million disbursed to employees and their families.
For families like the Kaysters, the support does not guarantee medals or records. But what it does offer is opportunity, and the chance for hard work to translate into progress. Sometimes, as in Marlon Kayster’s case, that progress is measured in fractions of a second, on a national track, with the world watching. The future for Marlon looks very bright indeed.