Wolfgang Dittrich
Wolfgang Dittrich (* 1962 in Neuss ) is a former German triathlete and swimmer and German triathlon champion (1987).
Career
Military world champion swimming 1981
Before starting his triathlon career, Wolfgang Dittrich was a member of the German national swimming team and in 1981 became the military world champion in the 400 meter medley.
Dittrich was later considered the fastest swimmer among the Ironman athletes during his active time , who was also able to keep up with the world's best in the other two disciplines. He dominated the swim course in Hawaii and won the opening discipline in 1987 and 1989 to 1993.
In 1987, after winning the German triathlon championship, his hometown Neuss voted him “Sportsman of the Year”.
Dittrich, together with Jürgen Zäck and Dirk Aschmoneit, formed the dominant "Big Three" over the Ironman distance (3.86 km swimming, 180.2 km cycling and 42.195 km running) in Germany at the beginning of the 1990s.
3rd place Ironman Hawaii 1993
In 1993 he was the first German to be on the podium at the Ironman Hawaii - with third place.
During the final preparation phase for the Ironman Hawaii 1994, Dittrich had to seek medical treatment in Encinitas , California , after a bike fall, with knee problems and buried his ambitions for a possible Hawaii victory.
A serious joint infection of the knee followed, which almost led to a sudden end to his career. Due to this infection, the rehabilitation dragged on, so that Dittrich could not start again in an Ironman competition until 1996. With a lead of over ten minutes, however, he had to end his first race at the Ironman Japan because of a front wheel defect.
From 1996 he started again at Ironman Hawaii, always came out of the water with the leading group, but was unable to build on his top times, especially in terms of running. In 1998, he finished his last race in Hawaii prematurely on the bike course due to stomach problems. The 1998 Steel Town Man in Linz , Austria, was his first and only victory in a long distance.
After his professional career, Dittrich works as a sports advisor and swimming coach. He organizes seminars, courses, training camps and project events.
He has been married to professional triathlete Leslie Benson Dittrich since November 2002 and lives in Boulder (USA).
Sporting successes
year | rank | competition | venue | time | comment |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aug 6, 2000 | 2 | Steel Town Man | Linz | 04:10:44 | (Half distance) |
1994 | 1 | Wildflower triathlon | Lake San Antonio | 04:05:26 | Victory with a new course record |
1992 | 1 | Heidelberg triathlon | Heidelberg | ||
1991 | 5 | Supersprint series | Roth | 01:53:32 | on the Olympic distance (1.5 km swimming, 40 km cycling and 10 km running) |
Aug 6, 1989 | 65 | ITU Short Distance Triathlon World Championships | Avignon | 02:12:05 | First staging of a world championship on the short distance |
July 30, 1989 | 3 | DTU German Championship Triathlon Short Distance | Landau on the Isar | ||
June 11, 1989 | 5 | ETU Short Distance Triathlon European Championships | Cascais | 02:04:38 | ETU European Championship |
June 22, 1987 | 1 | DTU German Championship Triathlon Short Distance | St. Wendel | German champion on the short distance |
year | rank | competition | venue | time | comment |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apr 23, 2000 | 9 | Strongman All Japan Triathlon | Miyakojima | 08:08:00 | |
Nov 6, 1999 | 14th | Ironman Florida | Panama City | 09:17:19 | |
Apr 25, 1999 | 8th | Strongman All Japan Triathlon | Miyakojima | 09:06:01 | |
1999 | 6th | Steel Town Man | Linz | 09:12:35 | |
Oct 3, 1998 | DNF | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | - | |
July 12, 1998 | 14th | Ironman Europe | Roth | 08:47:47 | |
Apr 19, 1998 | 6th | Strongman All Japan Triathlon | Miyakojima | 07:56:07 | |
1998 | 1 | Steel Town Man | Linz | 08:36:26 | |
Oct 18, 1997 | 21st | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | 09:04:44 | |
Aug 3, 1997 | 13 | Ironman Switzerland | Zurich | 09:14:42 | |
Oct 26, 1996 | 37 | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | 09:06:01 | |
Apr 1996 | DNF | Strongman All Japan Triathlon | Miyakojima | - | Race stopped after front wheel defect |
July 10, 1994 | 4th | Ironman Europe | Roth | 08:11:02 | |
Oct 23, 1993 | 3 | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | 08:20:13 | Dittrich was the first German to reach a podium at the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. |
July 13, 1993 | 4th | Triathlon Longue Distance de Nice | Nice | behind Mark Allen , Simon Lessing and Rob Barel | |
July 10, 1993 | 5 | Ironman Europe | Roth | 08:15:29 | |
Oct 10, 1992 | 4th | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | 08:23:19 | |
Oct 19, 1991 | 5 | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | 08:30:48 | |
July 13, 1991 | 7th | Ironman Europe | Roth | 08:21:35 | |
July 14, 1990 | 5 | Ironman Europe | Roth | 08:37:47 | |
Oct 14, 1989 | 10 | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | 08:39:56 | |
June 24, 1989 | 7th | Ironman Europe | Roth | 04:10:47 | Half distance |
Oct 10, 1987 | 42 | Ironman Hawaii | Hawaii | 09:45:19 | Wolfgang Dittrich finished the swim as fastest in 50:41 minutes |
(DNF - Did Not Finish)
Top times at the Ironman Hawaii
- Best swimming time: 1991 in 48:02 min.
- Best cycling time: 1993 in 4:30:29 hours
- Best running time: 1992 in 2:56:27 hours
- Best time at the finish: 1993 in 8:20:13 hours
Top times at Ironman Europe (in Roth)
- Best swimming times:
- 1998 in 44:36 min.
- 1990 in 45:11 min.
- 1994 in 45:49 min.
- 1991 in 46:36 min.
- Best cycling time:
- 1993 in 4:26:45 hours
Web links
- Wolfgang Dittrich - a portrait . In: tri2b.com .
- Kai Baumgartner: On the 40th birthday of Wolfgang Dittrich . In: 3athlon.de . March 20, 2003. Archived from the original on September 15, 2004.
- Wolfgang Dittrich in the Munzinger archive ( beginning of article freely accessible)
- Profile and results of Wolfgang Dittrich in the ITU database at Triathlon.org , accessed on November 23, 2017 (English).
- Profile for Wolfgang Dittrich at the Institute for Applied Training Science , accessed on September 3, 2014
literature
- Babbitt, Bob: "25 Years of the Ironman Triathlon World Championship"
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Dittrich, Wolfgang |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German triathlete |
DATE OF BIRTH | 1962 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Neuss , Germany |