Kristian Blummenfelt's Triumphant Return: Dominates IRONMAN Frankfurt 2024

Kristian Blummenfelt made a triumphant return to long-distance triathlon racing on Sunday, capturing a remarkable victory at IRONMAN Frankfurt 2024.

The 30-year-old Norwegian triathlete, who had recently focused on short-course events and preparation for the Paris 2024 Olympics, hadn’t competed in an Ironman since Kona in 2022. Just 13 days before Frankfurt, he was racing in a Mixed Relay in Paris over the Super Sprint distance.

Despite the gap between his long-distance races, Blummenfelt appeared as if he’d never left. He maintained a strong position on the bike before launching an impressive run, seizing control of the race on the streets of Frankfurt.

Nicknamed 'Big Blu', Blummenfelt only needed to complete the race to secure his spot for Kona in October. However, he aimed higher, surging to the front during the run and never relinquishing his lead. His victory was even more remarkable considering he had to take a toilet break and later vomited on the course, yet still managed to finish with an incredible marathon time of 2:32:29.

Two-time IRONMAN World Champion and German favourite, Patrick Lange, who was among the pre-race favourites, ended up in eighth place, trailing Blummenfelt by nearly 12 minutes.

Swim: Blummenfelt Keeps Pace, Lange Faces Early Hurdles

Germany’s Wilhelm Hirsch led the Men’s Pro field out of the water after the first swim loop, with Switzerland’s Andrea Salvisberg and the Netherlands’ Menno Koolhaas close behind. Among the big contenders, New Zealand’s Braden Currie was in fifth place, while Blummenfelt held seventh, both well-positioned. Lange, however, found himself further back in 32nd place, over a minute behind, with American athlete Sam Long trailing by another 2:41 in 62nd.

Hirsch retained his lead as the swim concluded, exiting the water in 45:51, followed by Salvisberg and Koolhaas. Blummenfelt stayed in seventh, just 15 seconds off the leaders. Lange was over four minutes behind in 31st, with Long lagging by more than seven minutes.

Bike: Hogenhaug Takes Charge Despite a Crash

Hirsch continued to lead early on the bike course, extending his advantage to a minute by the 30km mark. Danish athlete Kristian Hogenhaug moved into second place, leading a group of 16 riders that included Blummenfelt in fourth. Currie was more than three minutes behind, while Lange trailed by over five minutes. Long and Foley were over nine minutes off the pace.

By the 45km mark, Hogenhaug had caught up with Hirsch, with a group of 12 riders, including Blummenfelt, trailing by 44 seconds. Lange was still more than five minutes behind, with Long and Foley over nine minutes back.

Hogenhaug dominated the second quarter of the bike leg, even after a fall on a slippery turn. He quickly recovered and built a 40-second lead over Hirsch, with Blummenfelt and others in the chase group a minute behind. Lange was now in 18th place, over six minutes off the pace. Long’s hopes for a Kona slot seemed to be diminishing as he and Foley fell more than 16 minutes behind the leader.

With 20km remaining on the bike course, Hogenhaug maintained a strong lead of 2:42, with Blummenfelt in the chase group over four minutes behind. Lange, Currie, and Hanson were over 11 minutes back. Hogenhaug was the first into T2, finishing the bike leg in 3:57:09. Blummenfelt followed in third, nearly five minutes behind, setting the stage for a strong run.

Run: Blummenfelt Powers to Victory

Blummenfelt quickly closed the gap on Hogenhaug during the run. By the 3km mark, he had overtaken Zepuntke and was closing in on the leader. After just 7km, Blummenfelt surged to the front and never looked back. Despite a brief toilet stop and even vomiting during the run, he held onto his lead, completing the marathon in 2:32:29 and finishing the race in 7:27:21.

Kieran Lindars from Britain delivered the performance of his career to finish second, while Italy’s Gregory Barnaby rounded out the podium.