Having been one of the biggest names to turn down a T100 Triathlon World Tour contract in 2024, Patrick Lange said that he was instead following his heart this season.

For the German, that means a year focusing on the IRONMAN Pro Series, with a third IRONMAN World Championship title in Kona up for grabs at the end of the season.

Giving TRI247 an update on his training over the winter, the 37-year-old said that despite catching Covid-19 his fitness is trending in the right direction and he’s excited to race.

“The motivation is high”

Having finished the season with a fourth place finish at IRONMAN Portugal, Lange shared that he took some time off before heading to Mallorca, where he unfortunately contracted Covid-19.

“After Ironman Portugal, I took some time off to recharge. In late November, I began the build-up, followed by a camp in December in Mallorca.

“Going to Mallorca to collect some base miles with a fun group has been my favourite camp for many years! Unfortunately, during the second week of the camp, I got COVID again, and it took quite a while to recover.

“Fortunately, I was able to resume training about three weeks later, and currently, I am in my first training camp of 2024 and pleased with the progress. The motivation is high, and I feel that I am improving strongly.”

“The IRONMAN Pro Series will host races where my heart lies”

Speaking about his decision to race the IRONMAN Pro Series, Lange reiterated that his decision was about following his heart, stating that the decision aligned perfectly with his ambitions.

“The Ironman Pro Series will host races where my heart lies. I realized that I need to focus on races that resonate with me to find the 100% commitment to go all out!

“Every race I have chosen to be part of this year sets my heart on fire. The Ironman Pro Series is the only racing series that can offer that kind of feeling for me.”