Here’s what happened in the swim in the men’s race at Challenge Roth…
The big – though not unexpected – news was that it was going to be a non-wetsuit swim, with the water temperature 25 degrees Celsius in the Danube-Main Canal.
Conditions – in terms of a fast time – were otherwise ideal, with a pleasant overcast morning and virtually no breeze. The air temperature at the start at 0630 local time was 18C.
And also going according to the script were the early stages of the swim as Rico Bogen (GER), in his first full-distance race, leading things out from the gun.
There was a supposed ‘swim WhatsApp group’ featuring Bogen, Jonas Schomburg (GER) and defending champion Sam Laidlow (FRA), with the aim to try and distance pre-race favourite Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR).
That was how things panned out early as Bogen drove the pace before surveying the damage with a bit of backstroke as Schomburg took over on the front. Already by the 1km point they had forced a split, with a group of five having clear water between themselves and the rest.
Five-star show
The five in question were Bogen, Schomburg, Laidlow, Menno Koolhaas (NED) and Finn Große-Freese (GER) and midway through the 3.8km swim they had already opened up a 52-seconds advantage over Blummenfelt and Fred Funk (GER), with that pair themselves clear of the third group.
It was a fascinating tactic and they were executing it brilliantly, reminiscent of what unfolded in the IRONMAN World Championship in Nice last year, though things that day were hampered by Laidlow’s struggles in the water.
There were no such issues here and going into the second half of the swim it was Laidlow who moved to the front and continued to stretch things out.
And the pattern continued heading back towards transition as the five pulled further clear, the lead constantly changing and the gap over two minutes passing the 3km point.
“It’s exciting – they have common interests and there’s nothing illegal about it,” said an impressed Sebastian Kienle on the live commentary.
Blu three minutes back
Making the final turn it was Koolhaas who was now in front but by the time they reached the exit it was initial leader Bogen who led them out of the water, with the other four right behind him.
The time was 46:56, with Laidlow just a second back and eight seconds covering the front five.
And the big news was that there was two minutes and 58 seconds back to Blummenfelt in sixth, with Funk right next to him and then another full minute back to Nick Emde (GER) in eighth. Kristian Høgenhaug (DEN) was ninth and three-time world champion Patrick Lange (GER) was tenth, with Magnus Ditlev (DEN) just behind them.
To give that three-minute gap to Blummenfelt some context, Lucy Charles-Barclay was predictably out on her own in the women’s race yet ‘only’ able to put a minute-and-a-half into her rivals.
Click here to read how the rest of the race played out.
Challenge Roth men’s swim results
| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Swim time | Gap to leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rico Bogen | GER | 46:56 | — |
| 2 | Sam Laidlow | FRA | 46:57 | +0:01 |
| 3 | Jonas Schomburg | GER | 46:59 | +0:03 |
| 4 | Menno Koolhaas | NED | 47:00 | +0:04 |
| 5 | Finn Große-Freese | GER | 47:04 | +0:08 |
| 6 | Kristian Blummenfelt | NOR | 49:54 | +2:58 |
| 7 | Frederic Funk | GER | 49:56 | +3:00 |
| 8 | Nick Emde | GER | 50:56 | +4:00 |
| 9 | Kristian Høgenhaug | DEN | 50:59 | +4:03 |
| 10 | Patrick Lange | GER | 51:01 | +4:05 |
