Comrades hero Dijana plans to build home for his family

Comrades Marathon champion Tete Dijana says he wishes to compete in overseas marathons but does not have an agent to help him out. 

Dijana now sits at the pinnacle of roadrunning in SA after his heroic run in Sunday's ultra marathon. He completed the 90km distance between Pietermaritzburg to Durban in 5:30:38. In winning, he pocketed R260,000.

He is a semi-professional athlete as he juggles his regular job as a security guard at the University of North West in Potchefstroom and being a roadrunner. With the money that he has won, and income from his job, Dijana wants to secure a future for his children.

"I want to build a home for my children, put money away for them and invest it. We don't know what life holds tomorrow," said Dijana. 

"Athletics is a temporary career, you can get an injury at any time, so it's important to always have savings. I wanted to be a full-time athlete but Covid-19 taught me there's no such, you always need to keep working. Work is important so you can always have a balance in your life." he said. 

Dijana, who hails from Mahikeng, North West, has been celebrated by his home province after winning the ultra marathon. In fact, he made it two in a row for Mahikeng as the last winner – in 2019 before the Covid-induced break – was Edward Mothibi, his Nedbank Running Club teammate. Mothibi finished second on Sunday.

The 34-year-old Dijana is dreaming of competing in international city marathons, where the winnings are more significant, provided he secures an agent to help facilitate the dream.

"I want to race overseas, but you need an agent to help market you and get money and I don't have an agent," said Dijana. 

"If I can get a chance to go run overseas, I would take it. I would prepare well and compete hard."

Despite his determination, Dijana's calibre in standard marathon (42.2km) running is not known. The 42.2km races are the staple of the international elite races, which are dominated by Kenyan and Ethiopian runners.