IRONMAN Texas knocked out Patrick Lange, Kat Matthews, Antonio Benito and Jelle Geens this weekend. Four favorites who arrived with real podium options and left empty-handed.
The reasons were different in each case: injuries, mechanical breakdowns, tactical errors and a body that simply stopped responding. What they had in common was the frustration of watching several months of preparation vanish in a matter of miles.
Patrick Lange and Kat Matthews: when the body says enough
Patrick Lange arrived in Texas looking to recover after a year marked by injuries.
The 39-year-old German, a two-time winner on this circuit and a three-time IRONMAN world champion, needed a solid result to get back into the big boys' conversation.
But from the water it was clear that something was not right. The German never found his rhythm.
On the bike, a pain in the lower back began to grow until it became unbearable. I knew that to continue was to risk something worse than a DNF. “Today was not my day, I never found my rhythm and the pain in my back just got worse,” he acknowledged after quitting.
For her part, Kat Matthews, current Pro Series leader, came out of the water in a good position. His swimming was solid and in the first few kilometres of cycling he looked like he could fight for the podium. Then, a puncture in the rear wheel left her at the edge of the road. The Brit tried to change the wheel and move on, but the damage, as seen in Instagram images, was too severe.
Mechanical issues piled up and he had to retire. Her husband, Mark Matthews, later explained that the wheel was shattered and there was no way to repair it on the fly. “It was obvious that the puncture was serious, there was no way to continue,” Mark said.
Antonio Benito and Jelle Geens: tactical mistakes and unresponsive legs
Antonio Benito came to the transition with options. The man from La Mancha had done an important job in the water and on the bike, fighting for a podium that, before the test, TriRating predicted him behind Kristian Blummenfelt and Marten van Riel.
But when he started running he made a mistake that cost him the race: “Everything was going well until we got off to run and I had the great idea to follow Van Riel,” he admitted on Instagram afterwards.
The pace was too high and his body couldn't take it. He had to quit. Now it's time to analyze what went wrong and learn for the next one. His coach, Pablo Dapena, has experienced a complicated weekend, in which several other pupils, apart from Antonio himself, have not performed at the expected level: "It has not been the ideal weekend. The causes will have to be analyzed and reflected on individually.”
Jelle Geens, reigning IRONMAN 70.3 world champion, also had to retire. In his case, the problem was physical and sudden. From kilometer 30 of the walking race, his legs stopped responding. There just wasn't any more. Geens now faces a choice: compete in Kona or focus on defending his title in Nice next September.
There, in French lands, he will have a new contender that will seriously threaten his crown: Sam Laidlow, winner of IRONMAN 70.3 Valencia yesterday.