It was one of the big talking points in one of the best races of the season and now Magnus Ditlev has given his reaction to that red card he was shown – and which was later rescinded – at IRONMAN Frankfurt on Sunday.

Ditlev, ranked number four in the world and the winner of IRONMAN South Africa earlier this season, had moved up to second early on the run behind Kristian Høgenhaug.

But at around the 8km mark an official rode rode up to him and showed him a red card.

How it played out

On the broadcast, Ditlev could clearly be heard saying: “What the f*** are you doing? You can’t disqualify me.”

He continued running – as he was allowed to do – and the coverage later suggested that an initial yellow card might have been imposed (but not served) for littering outside of an aid station.

But 40 minutes later news came through that the red card had been quashed and the race – which also featured penalties for the likes of Høgenhaug and reigning IRONMAN World Champion Patrick Lange – played out to a conclusion.

However Ditlev would fade into eighth late on as Kristian Blummenfelt powered past Høgenhaug to defend his title in style.

‘I was quite taken aback’

And after the dust settled, Ditlev took to Instagram on Monday to give his version of events.

He wrote: “What an eventful day yesterday… During the run segment I was given an immediate red card (disqualification) for disposing of an ice cup too late through an aid station. I was told I could still continue to run and that they would discuss the DQ.

“At the time I was running well, in 2nd position, and feeling very strong.

“As people that watched the broadcast could see I was quite taken aback by the whole situation and didn’t really know what to do. I lost it mentally and started to fade later on.

“I was later informed that the DQ had been cancelled and today I’m happy that I at least got to finish the race and also witness some insane performances at @ironmantri Frankfurt.

“Congrats to @mr_hoegen with a crazy strong day and to the two Norwegians on the podium @kristianblu and @casperstornes.”