Magnus Ditlev’s IRONMAN Frankfurt took an…unexpected twist on Sunday. The Danish star became embroiled in a penalty dispute during the marathon leg of the European Championship. It was quite the scene, and all caught on camera.
Ditlev, a four-time Challenge Roth winner and ranked fourth in the world, was among the contenders chasing down surprise leader Kristian Høgenhaug after the bike leg. Around 8km into the run, Ditlev had surged into second place and closed the gap to Høgenhaug to just over five minutes. Only for a referee on a motorbike to intervene.
Live coverage captured a tense exchange as the official handed Ditlev a red card, suggesting he had not served a one-minute penalty. A stunned Ditlev responded: “What the fuck are you doing? You can’t disqualify me.”
The initial penalty, which may have stemmed from either littering or an unzipped trisuit in transition, had apparently been overlooked. Ditlev, confused but undeterred, kept running, at one point asking the referee: “Have you made your mind up yet?”
Here’s where it got even weirder. No one knew what the F was going for almost 40 minutes as race officials reviewed the situation. Eventually, the red card was rescinded. That allowed Ditlev to continue to race without sanction.
Despite the chaos, Ditlev remained focused, holding second place through the halfway point of the marathon. Though the drama didn’t derail the race entirely, it raised questions about communication and consistency in officiating—especially in a high-stakes event within the IRONMAN Pro Series.
You can watch the whole affair below.
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The post Just a wild scene as Magnus Ditlev caught in mid-race penalty drama at IRONMAN Frankfurt appeared first on Triathlon Magazine Canada.