Tete Dijana Defends Comrades Marathon Title With Record-Breaking Race, Mzansi Proud: “What a Dramatic Finish”

• Tete Dijana won the Comrades Marathon for the second year in a row and broke the men's record
• The Nedbank runner smashed David Gatebe’s record, which has been reigning supreme since 2016
• South Africans said the nail-biting race entertained them and many mentioned that Dijana made them proud

DURBAN - Tete Dijana defended his Comrades Marathon title with a record-breaking men's time of 5 hours, 13 minutes, and 58 seconds on Sunday.

Dijana was awarded R1.2 million for his triumph in the 87.701km race, including R500 000 for winning, R500 000 for breaking the record, and R200 000 for being the first South African to cross the finish line, reported TimesLIVE.

Tete Dijana followed by Piet Wiersma from the Netherlands

Dutch runner Piet Wiersma came in second and finished in 5 hours,14 minutes, and 1 second at Kingsmead Stadium in Durban.

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According to IOL, the 2023 men's race from Pietermaritzburg to Durban had the closest finish since 1967. SA runner Edward Mothibi came in at third place.

Gerda Steyn took the victory in the women's race in a time of 5 hours, 44 minutes, and 56 seconds. According to EWN Steyn also broke the record set by Frith van der Merwe in 1989.

South Africans congratulate Tete Dijana on winning Comrades Marathon

@RushNdoda commented:

"Tete Dijana did it. Back to back winner! Broke the record! First SA! First Nedbank AC! Piet gave him a run, well done to him for pushing."

@TheRealClementM posted:

"What a dramatic finish. Well Done Tete Dijana."

@LoratoTshenkeng mentioned:

"That finish was very tight. Yho! Congratulations to Tete Dijana for winning the #ComradesMarathon2023 What a champ!Record Breaking!"

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@TsholofeloHope added:

"Tete Dijana said that he built a home for his family with last year’s prize money. Humility and discipline will take you far in life. Look at what God did again this year and of course hard work."

@zizikodwa tweeted:

"The champion came back and put on a magnificent defence. Congratulations to Tete Dijana on securing his own title with a record-breaker."

@Velempini stated:

"Top 3 Runners have beaten the last course record. What a Set of athletes! Well dne Tete Dijana."

KZN marathon runner runs in the name of charity completes 160km for school shoes

In another story, Briefly News reported that Nontuthuko Magbhi, who grew up in a rural village, knows first-hand the difficulties schoolchildren face in impoverished communities. This motivated her to make a difference, leading her to embark on a remarkable journey to raise funds for school shoes.

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Magbhi ran 160km over four days in the Ultra Asia Race in Vietnam, determined to raise enough money to buy 500 pairs of school shoes for underprivileged children in KwaZulu-Natal.

Source: Briefly News