Magnus Ditlev Disqualified Patrick Lange wins CHALLENGE Budva-Montenegro

Sunday 10 October 2021

During the men’s swim, Mattia Ceccarelli’s intentions were at least immediately clear: to create a gap on the rest of the field. And even though that gap didn’t get too big, the Italian still managed to get a small lead over his first pursuers. When he climbed ashore after 23:09 minutes, he had a 16-second lead over Ognjen Stjoanovic, who was followed by Patrick Lange and Nils Frommhold by a few seconds. Another favorite, Magnus Ditlev, was another 50 seconds behind them.

On the bike, Lange and Frommhold quickly rode up to Ceccarelli, but from behind it was mainly Ditlev who caused some panic up front and had already passed everyone after 15 kilometers and had thus made up for his swimming deficit. After 30 kilometers he had even extended his lead and had a 1:12 minute gap on his three chasers already.

This clearly gave Ditlev wings, because in the following kilometers he only managed to ride further away. After sixty kilometers, when two of the three bike laps were completed, the Dane had a three-minute lead on the same three chasers. Behind those three athletes, Ruedi Wild and Strahinja Trakic came through at a gap of 5:16 minutes.

In the final part of the bike leg, Ditlev again keeps increasing his lead and when he came back into the exchange zone after 2:06:00, he had a 4:33 lead over still Ceccarelli, Lange and Frommhold. Entering the run, the Dane thus had a comfortable lead and it was quite clear that these four men would be competing with each other for the medals.

Yet it became clear quite quickly that there was really only one man in the race for the gold, as Ditlev also proved inimitable during the run. Halfway through the half marathon, his lead over Lange, who was running second at that point, had already grown to no less than 7:27 minutes. After ten kilometers it was Lange who yelled out in amazement: ‘How is this possible?’

It is with a very heavy heart that we have to announce the disqualification of Magnus Ditlev after his victory earlier today at CHALLENGE BUDVA-MONTENEGRO. This dsq is due to an unintentional course cutting action, after following the lead bike, which became apparent in the final stages of todays’ race.

All involved regret this decision but the application of the objective rules as set out by our World Triathlon governing body is an important factor in our sport.

In an act of solidarity, pro’s finishing behind Magnus decided to share their earnings of todays’ price money as a token of appreciation of the form Magnus showed today.

Patrick Lange now wins CHALLENGE BUDVA-MONTENEGRO. Ruedi Wild is the runner-up and Nils Frommhold claims the third spot.

MALE PRO:
1 Patrick Lange DEU 3:48:21
2 Ruedi Wild CHE +9:14
3 Nils Frommhold DEU +9:58
4 Mattia Ceccarelli ITA +12:15

CHALLENGE Family


Coming Triathlon Events View all

eagleXman

Assergi, Italy

TriBourne 226

Eastbourne, United Kingdom

Kaike triathlon

Yonago, Tottori, Japan

Outlaw Triathlon

Nottingham, United Kingdom

Wild Siberia Xtreme

Lake Cheybek-Kohl, Siberia, Russian Federation

Starvation Extreme

Starvation Reservoir, Utah, United States

Norseman Xtreme

Geilo, Norway

Ostseeman

Glucksburg, Germany

Slovakman 226

Pieštany, Slovakia

Greatman Kornik

Kornik, Poland

Ironman Lake Placid

Lake Placid, United States

Ironman Leeds

Leeds, United Kingdom

Ironman Canada Ottawa

Ottowa, Canada

Ironman Kalmar Sweden

Kalmar, Sweden

Ironman Copenhagen

Copenhagen, Denmark

Ironman Tallinn

Tallinn, Estonia

Ironman Switzerland

Thun, Switzerland

Ironman Wisconsin

Madison, Wisconsin, United States

IRONMAN WORLD CHAMPS MEN

Nice, France

Ironman Japan South Hokkaido

Hokkaido, Japan

TRI Boulder

Boulder, CO, United States

Castle to Coast

Windsor to Brighton, United Kingdom

Sourdough Triathlon

Chatanika, Alaska, United States

Timisoara Triathlon

Timisoara, Romania

The Gauntlet Belvoir Castle Triathlon

Belvoir Castle, United Kingdom

Trumer Triathlon

Obertrum am See, Austria

Honeymoon Half Gravel Tri

Honeymoon Bay BC, Canada

TriBourne 113

Eastbourne, United Kingdom

Garmin Tri Tour Goldap

Goldap, Poland

Route 66 Half

Springfield, IL, United States

70.3 Ecuador

Manta, Ecuador

70.3 Oregon

Salem OR, United States

70.3 Ohio

Sandusky, United States

70.3 Boise

Boise Idaho, United States

70.3 Maine

Augusta, United States

70.3 Calgary

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

70.3 Krakow

Kraków, Poland

70.3 Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

70.3 Lapu Lapu

Cebu, Philippines

70.3 Hradec Kralove

Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic

Triathlon News & Media Blogs View all

IRONMAN Lake Placid Pro Series Start List

IRONMAN Lake Placid Pro Series Start List

Friday 18 Jul 2025 [Triathlon News]

On Sunday, July 20, the IRONMAN® Pro Series™ returns to New York’s Adirondack Mountains when over 80 of the world’s top professional triathletes toe the start line at the iconic Athletic Brewing IRONMAN® Lake Placid triathlon. The event will offer a maximum of 5,000 points towards IRONMAN® Pro Series standings, a $125,000 USD event total pro prize purse, and four qualifying slots for each gender to the 2025 IRONMAN World Championship® triathlon in Nice, France (men’s race) and Kona, Hawai`i (wom more

70.3 Ecuador Pro Start List

70.3 Ecuador Pro Start List

Friday 18 Jul 2025 [Triathlon News]

Welcome to a very special edition! In 2025, we celebrate 10 years of history, dedication, and passion—a decade filled with emotions, con- quered challenges, and thousands of athletes crossing a finish line that has become a symbol of pride for the entire region. more

Little Elm, Texas to Host New IRONMAN 70.3 Triathlon in 2026

Little Elm, Texas to Host New IRONMAN 70.3 Triathlon in 2026

Monday 14 Jul 2025 [Triathlon News]

IRONMAN®, the global leader in long-distance triathlon, announced today that it will host the new IRONMAN® 70.3® Dallas-Little Elm triathlon in 2026. The new event is scheduled to make its debut on Sunday, March 15, 2026, beginning at Little Elm Park and traversing through the town of Little Elm and the North Texas countryside. General registration for the new event opens on July 23, 2025, more

Julie Derron Wins IRONMAN Vitoria Gasteiz 2025

Julie Derron Wins IRONMAN Vitoria Gasteiz 2025

Monday 14 Jul 2025 [Triathlon News]

The 2025 IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz, held on Sunday, July 13th in the Basque Country of Spain, saw a commanding victory in the women's professional race and some fierce competition in the age-group categories. more

Kat Matthews, Harry Palmer Crowned IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea Champions

Kat Matthews, Harry Palmer Crowned IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea Champions

Sunday 13 Jul 2025 [Triathlon News]

The South Coast of Wales was the sunny setting for this weekend’s race, as the IRONMAN Pro Series™ landed in the UK for the first time ever. Harry Palmer of Great Britain retained his IRONMAN® 70.3® Swansea title, while Kat Matthews claimed her second IRONMAN Pro Series win of the season. more

Facebook


YouTube


Sign up for FREE NEWSLETTER:

We will never share your email address or spam you.