In many ways, Kristian Blummenfelt and Patrick Lange both ride the Redemption Express into Kona. Blummenfelt fresh off the back of Paris 2024 Olympics disappointment, now seeking long-course glory instead. And Lange taking to the start line after a rollercoaster year of heartbreak and disappointment.
The quest for redemption aside, these star athletes also have another thing in common: experience of taking the crown on an IRONMAN World Championship stage. So with hopes, dreams and a world title on the line, if it were to come down to a head-to-head battle on the Big Island of Kona at the IRONMAN World Championship this weekend, who would come out on top? Blummenfelt or Lange?
TRI247’s Jenny Lucas-Hill looks at how the two former champs stack up and tries to conjure up some crystal ball magic to predict how it could all pan out.
Can Big Blu beat double champ Patrick Lange to take the win in Kona?
If it were a case of ‘you’re only as good as your last IRONMAN race’, Blummenfelt would be the front runner here by far. But in reality it’s all a bit more nuanced than that. Let’s take a look at how 2024 has shaped up for these athletes so far – and how that could impact the energy they bring to the IRONMAN Kona start line this weekend.
Kristian Blummenfelt 2024 race results and form
Take a look at Blummenfelt’s triathlon resume and it’s ridiculously impressive. In 2021 the Norwegian star made history in short-course triathlon as he became Olympic champion, World Triathlon Champion and won the World Triathlon Championship final in the space of one year. And that success continued the following year as he went on to the win the postponed 2021 IRONMAN World Championship St George, and added a 70.3 World Champion title to his haul later in the year.
Big Blu, as he’s become known, seemed infallible. But his ambitious schedules and desire to have it all have faltered in recent years. He hasn’t had a podium in short-course triathlon since August 2022, and 10th place at Yokohama was his best short-course finish in 2024. Those hopes of defending his Olympic title fell short at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, with the Bergen superstar finishing only 12th.
Kristian Blummenfelt 2024 RACE RESULTS TO DATE
WTCS CAGLIARI – 31st place
PARIS OLYMPICS (INDIVIDUAL) – 12th place
PARIS OLYMPICS (MIXED RELAY) – 11th place
IRONMAN FRANKFURT – 1st place
CHALLENGE SAMARKAND – 1st place
The lauded ‘Norwegian Method’ started coming into question, but the questions did not last for long. An INSANE performance from Blummenfelt at IRONMAN Frankfurt, a little over two weeks after that Parisian plummet, showed that Big Blu has still got it – he perhaps just needs a little more tarmac to play with these days. Coming into T2 almost five minutes behind race leader Kristian Hogenhaug, Blummenfelt soon stormed to the front of the race. Not even the gastric fireworks which saw him dive for a port-a-potty and show off some impressive projectile vomiting could break his stride. He surged to victory with an astonishing 2hrs 32 mins marathon split, with a ridiculously fast overall finish time of 7:27:21. Considering he didn’t even need to win the race to validate his Kona spot – just finish it – we have to wonder just how much of a weapon the Norwegian Tour de Force might be on the Big Island.
Kristian Blummenfelt eats ‘impossible’ for breakfast
If we were talking about pretty much anyone other than Kristian, you’d be looking at his results sheet for the last year – with just one stand-out performance and a lot of falling short – and discounting him as a one-hit wonder. But this isn’t just anyone. Blu has proven he can defy the odds – over and over again. Remember that insane race schedule last August? Kristian bounced from a 3rd place finish at the PTO US Open (4 August), to the Paris Olympics Test Event two weeks later where he picked up a 9th place finish. Then he hopped right back on a plane to race at the PTO Asian Open two days later where he took the win in Singapore. And then made it to the start line for 70.3 Worlds in Finland a week later. For most athletes, such a schedule would have been impossible. But Kristian Blummenfelt is an athlete who eats impossible for breakfast.
And with coach Olav Aleksander Bu suggesting a new Kona record would be “a good target” for Blummenfelt this Saturday, we can rest assured Big Blu is playing to win at the 2024 IRONMAN World Championship. The Norwegian camp might not be afraid to gamble on talking a big game, but when they succeed – they do it in style.
Patrick Lange 2024 race results and form
A double IRONMAN World Champion in Kona in 2017 and 2018, Patrick Lange has had a frustrating 2024 season so far.
Choosing to forego the offer of a T100 contract, Lange decided to focus instead on the IRONMAN Pro Series. The season opener at 70.3 Oceanside saw him finish back in 16th. Delayed redemption was to come in the form of an eventual win at IRONMAN Texas in April. Originally Tomás Rodríguez Hernández took the win, but after a doping violation was uncovered and a ban upheld, the victory was eventually handed to Lange several months later.
At the time, the defeat in Texas obviously stung. Speaking to TRI247 about Rodriguez at the Challenge Roth pre-race press conference – before the news broke about the Mexican athlete’s doping ban, but after we’d found out he wasn’t going to appear on the Roth start line after all – Lange was disappointed not to have a chance to race him again. He said: “Because he obviously beat me in a race that means a lot to me with Texas being my first ever IRONMAN. It was a defeat that touched me a little bit and I thought that this is a good chance to take revenge.”
Later on in the year, after being handed the win following Rodriguez’s ban, Lange said: “It’s heartbreaking to have that magical moment of crossing the finish line as the winner taken away in such an unfair way.”
PATRICK LANGE 2024 RACE RESULTS TO DATE
IRONMAN TEXAS – 1st place
IRONMAN 70.3 MALLORCA – 17th place
CHALLENGE ROTH – DNF
IRONMAN FRANKFURT – 8th place
Time to break the 2024 curse
Frustration and disappointment is a theme which has continued this year for Lange, with a 17th place at 70.3 Mallorca and then an unfortunate DNF at Challenge Roth after a heavy hit in the swim saw him suffer three dislocated ribs, putting the brakes on his sub-2:30 record marathon bid. Most recently came an 8th place in that IRONMAN Frankfurt race won by Blummenfelt.
Based on his race results alone this year, you might be quick to count him out of contention for the title in Kona this year. Particularly with the next gen of Laidlow, Ditlev and co firmly making their mark. But in my opinion, Lange has two key weapons on his side here: experience, and a thirst for redemption/revenge.
Lange has had three podium finishes in Kona, two of them on the top step. He knows what it takes to win here. And he knows all too well the bitter taste of falling short. After the year he’s had, he’s got to be fuelled up and fire-filled, seeking to break the ‘2024 curse’ and get back to winning ways. And of course, he’s still got that sub-2:30hr marathon record carrot to chase. With Kona that bit later this year, there’s the potential for ever so slightly cooler conditions and calmer winds. The stage could be set for the mother of all comebacks for Patrick Lange, who will want to show the world he might have been knocked down but he’s certainly not out.
Blummenfelt vs Lange Kona Verdict
It feels like we’re yet to see an IRONMAN World Championship race with both Kristian Blummenfelt and Patrick Lange racing at their very best. In 2022 when Blu took the title in St George, Lange was sidelined after a crash earlier in the season. The last time they raced in Kona, Lange was way off the pace finishing 15 minutes behind Kristian – 10th place to his 3rd. And then last year in Nice, where Lange finished 2nd in what looked like an upward trajectory back to his winning ways, Blummenfelt was absent from the start line, focusing instead on his bid for Paris 2024 Olympic glory.
So here’s hoping Blu and Lange are both hitting that Kona start line feeling battle ready.
KRISTIAN BLUMMENFELT VS PATRICK LANGE iN NUMBERS
PTO World Ranking: #166
World Triathlon Ranking: #33
Best IMWC Kona Finish: P3
TRI247 RATINGS
Swim: 7/10
Bike: 9/10
Run: 9/10
PTO World Ranking: #35
IRONMAN Pro Series Ranking: #4
2023 IMWC Finish: P2
Best IMWC Kona Finish: P1
TRI247 RATINGS
Swim: 6/10
Bike: 7/10
Run: 10/10
If I base my verdict on Lange and Blummenfelt’s last shared start line in isolation – IRONMAN Frankfurt – Blummenfelt is the obvious choice should it come down to a Norway vs Germany head-to-head in Kona this weekend. There’s also the Gustav Factor to consider. While I’m sure Iden will want to defend his Kona crown and get back to winning ways himself, word from Coach Bu suggests he might not quite be back in championship-winning shape right now. Which might mean he works with Blummenfelt instead.
But part of me wonders if while the likes of Blummenfelt, Laidlow and Ditlev blast out of T1 to go play bikes for 180km. Patrick Lange might stay disciplined and bide his time. If that front pack overcook it, Lange could be leaving them for dust by the time they hit the Energy Lab out on the run course.
And because of that, I’m going against my better judgement and backing Patrick Lange for the win if it comes down to a Lange vs Blummenfelt head-to-head.
Everyone loves an underdog, and it seems like 2024 owes Lange some decent luck to end the season.