It wasn’t quite enough to earn Patrick Lange a third Ironman world title, but adopting the positive mindset he talked to 220 about pre-race served as a great fillip to help him run the fastest-ever marathon in an Ironman World Championship.
Lange was more than 12min behind eventual winner Sam Laidlow as he completed the 112-mile bike leg in Nice, which could have been demotivating. Instead - as an athlete who is renowned for running through the field - he turned the situation to his advantage.
“The thought I had in my mind was that: ‘Hey man, you’re seventh off the bike in an Ironman World Championship!’ I’ve never had that. Normally I’m like 20th.
“It kept me in the game. I told myself: ‘Ok, it’s the best position I have ever been in [at this stage], don’t worry about the distance [to go], and maybe they just overcooked it.’ They kind of did. Except for one!”
That one was Laidlow, who was a class apart to become the youngest-ever men’s Ironman champion, and the first Frenchman to win the title. It was also, remarkably, his first Ironman title over either 70.3 or the full distance.
Lange continued: “I knew they’d start out quickly and yesterday evening in the pre-race chat with my coach [Bjorn Geesman] I said I didn't feel I have the 2:30 in me because of the bike course.
“I planned to run at 3:40min/km but the first 5km were 3:30min/km pace and it felt slow, so I was like: ‘Ok, the legs are not so bad. Catching up is really motivating and it’s cool to see the gaps melting away.
“I tried to focus on technique that we learned in running classes - keep the contact on the ground minimal and have a nice forward lean. I kept the cadence high and tried to run from my hips and - it sounds a little silly on such a flat course - but I focused on running the downhills well.”
Lange says that once he caught Ditlev to move into second place at 21 miles, he told his team he didn’t want to know the gap to the front as he wasn’t going to close it.
In the end the 2:32:41 marathon took 4min off Gustav Iden’s split from Hawaii last year, yet it still left him 4min back from Laidlow at the finish.
The second place sits alongside Lange’s third in 2016 and wins in Hawaii in 2017 and 2018 as he continues to fly the flag for arguably the strongest nation in long course triathlon.
“I have the full medal set,” he said. “And I think I have proven with this performance that I have shown that I am not old yet and still have much to give."
Alongside Laidlow, 24, and Ditlev, 25, on the podium, the 37-year-old is not ruling out another dart at the title when the men’s race returns to Hawaii next autumn.
“I can still keep improving, developing and should be able to keep up with the young generation which makes me proud because my generation is more and more retiring.”
Geesman, who also coaches Britain’s Kat Matthews, was more than impressed with his athlete.
“Patrick was perfect. The race plan was the best case scenario, more or less,” Geesman said. “Honestly, I didn’t expect someone being upfront that far so congratulations first to Sam, an amazing race and in my opinion unbeatable.”
Lange was more self-critical. “I don’t 100% agree,” he said. “I messed up my swim a little bit, I expected more. The only reason at the moment I know is that I didn’t see the buoys properly.
“I had a really good start which is normally my weakness but all of a sudden I was in the washing machine and not sure what happened there.
“But it was only a 60-90sec gap and could have been worse. I expected the bike course to be kind if lonely, with everyone focusing on their own power numbers, and I expected it to blow apart.”
Lange says a big bonus was catching three-time champion Jan Frodeno on the first big climb. “I started a minute down and caught him by the top and it kept my head in the game,” he added. “On the plateau we had a nice little group together which was beneficial and the descent went really well.
“I broke the group a little bit apart and went all-in on the downhill and put in some time, which makes me happy because we put a lot of effort into knowing the course and the corners.”
All his efforts weren’t enough to reel in Laidlow, who after finishing runner-up in Hawaii last year, showed no signs of relinquishing his lead this time around.
“It’s incredible,” Lange continued. “Twenty-four years old, the youngest ever men’s winner. Amazing. What can I say? He had a really tough season so I didn’t have him as my No 1 pick to be honest.
“But it’s great to see him performing and at the finish line I knew straightaway it meant so much to him, which is great to see. I think he grew up, and it makes me happy for him and I hope he enjoys it and embraces it and I think he’s a worthy winner.”
As for Lange, he once more stamped his mark on being the finest marathon runner in triathlon. While the 2:32:41 clocking was a championship record he has twice run faster, and with a 2:30:31 split in Ironman Israel in November and 2:30:27 in Challenge Roth in June, it seems only a matter of time before he becomes the first triathlete to run a sub 2:30 split.
