Magnus Ditlev to race US Open in Dallas

Sep 14, 2022 | Athlete Representation

Danish triathlete Magnus Ditlev will race at the prestigious Professional Triathlon Association’s (PTO) US open as the last hit out before the IRONMAN World Championship, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

Magnus Ditlev will head to Dallas and the PTO US Open taking place on Sunday September 18th. It is  the last test before the most important competition of the year, the IRONMAN World Championship on October 8.

The US Open is part of the PTO Tour organised by the Professional Triathletes Organisation, and is the race in Dallas is the last of the two competitions in the series. The winner will receive USD 100,000. Most of Ditlev’s expected competition for the Kona crown will also be there to fine-tune their final preparations for the world championship.

Held over 2 km of swimming, 80 km of cycling and 18 km of running, the US Open is the same distance as the Collins Cup held on August 20 in Slovakia, where Ditlev won his race match-up for overall winner Team Europe.

HEAT TRAINING IN DENMARK

Known as a very warm and humid race, IRONMAN Hawaii takes place on the Big Island of Kona in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Ditlev is already well underway with heat training in Denmark, and the Dallas competition will be a good test of the different strategies he will use in Hawaii.

“Dallas is likely to be 35 degrees and humid, so it’s a good test of how to cope with the heat and I can test the strategies I need in Hawaii regarding cooling, hydration, etc… I have started with heat training at home in Denmark, and I hope to see the effect of that in Dallas.”

The prize purse and location is also a major draw for the Danish champion. “The US Open is held at a rather awkward time in relation to the preparation towards Hawaii, but it’s such a big competition that I want to race, and it’s the same for most of the triathletes racing Kona,” he says. “I’ll use it to break up the trip to Hawaii. By going to Dallas, I’m halfway to Hawaii. I’ll stay a week in Dallas and go directly to Hawaii after the competition.”

HIGH HOPES FOR A WIN IN DALLAS

With a victory and maximum points in Collins Cup – and a total victory for his team, Team Europe – Ditlev is confident in performing well in Dallas.

“It went well in Collins Cup, where I won my match comfortably, and it’s very much the same competitors that will start here. It is over the same distances and with a 20-meter draft zone on the bicycle that suits me well, I think there are good opportunities for a good result.”

IMPROVEMENT IN SWIMMING AND RUNNING

While Ditlev is known for his cycling prowess, he has also improved his run, logging two 2:40 marathons in his two Ironman races this year.

“Even though it’s only 80 km of cycling, with seven laps on the bike section it’s possible that the whole field will end the bike ride at the same time, so we’ll have to run for victory. At the Collins Cup, I had to use the first 5 km on the run to pick up pace, but if you look at split times from 5 km to the finish line, only the two Norwegians, Blummenfelt and Iden, were faster than me. My present running shape is really good, so I’m not worried about running for a good result against the competition. It’s perhaps good for me to try a scenario where I don’t have a head start after the cycling, but instead can see how fast I can run when it’s head-to-head and not individually.”

He has also improved his swimming and is looking forward to measuring up against the field. “I swam well in Roth (Challenge Roth) and the swimming at the Collins Cup was probably the best swimming to date for me. It has been a big goal for a longer period to make my swimming better and more stable.”

NUMBER 3 IN THE WORLD RANKINGS

Ditlev is now number 3 in the PTO world rankings after the Collins. Only two super Norwegians are located above him: the Olympic champion and IRONMAN world champion Kristian Blummenfelt and two IRONMAN 70.3 world champions Gustav Iden. Both will not be in Dallas, but are qualified and among the favourites for IRONMAN Hawaii.

Featured photo credit: Professional Triathletes Organisation

NOTES

SELECTED RESULTS – MAGNUS DITLEV

2022:

  • Match victory and maximum points on debut in Collins Cup, August: 1st overall with Team Europe
  • Challenge Roth, Germany, July: 1st place in time 7:35:48
  • IRONMAN Texas, USA, April: 2nd place

2021:

  • Clash Miami, USA, December: 2nd place
  • IRONMAN 70.3 in Cascais, Portugal, October: 1st place
  • Challenge Budva-Montenegro, Montenegro, October: 1st place
  • Challenge Family, The Championships in Samorin, Slovakia, August: 2nd place
  • IRONMAN 70.3 St. George North America Championships in Utah, USA, May: 3rd place

2020:

  • IRONMAN 70.3 in Gdynia, Poland, September: 1st place (first professional victory)

GET TO KNOW MAGNUS DITLEV

  • From Virum in Denmark
  • 24 years old
  • 195 cm tall
  • Triathlon club: KTK86
  • Coach: Jens Petersen-Bach, former Prof. Triathlete
  • First triathlon race as age grouper in 2015
  • First professional race in 2019
  • Education: Bachelor in Chemistry and Technology, The Technical University of Denmark, 2019

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