The world’s best athletes compete at Anfi Challenge Mogan – Gran Canaria

April 21, 2021

Jan Frodeno, Patrick Lange, Pablo Dapena, Nicola Spirig, Sara Pereze Sala, Lisa Norden

While there are some races getting underway again worldwide, coming weekend many eyes will be on ANFI CHALLENGE MOGAN-GRAN CANARIA. An unprecedented battle between some of the best athletes will take place on the Spanish island. It seems that Jan Frodeno and Nicola Spirig are the biggest favourites for the win, but they will face a lot of competition from dozens of pro athletes who all want to get involved in the battle for the medals.

One thing is for sure, after his rock-solid win at CHALLENGE MIAMI, Jan Frodeno will be keen on another victory. The German World Champion is in excellent shape, but will have to deal with a number of particularly strong men. Frodeno will encounter, among others, compatriot Patrick Lange, who will finally return to action after a long time without races and will undoubtedly go all out to knock Frodeno off his throne. A lot can also be expected from Belgian Pieter Heemeryck – who has a lot to put right after his self-named disappointing race in Daytona – and local favourite Pablo Dapena Gonzalez.

In addition, there are a lot of outsiders who can still provide some spectacular surprises. Andi Boecherer, Thomas Davis, Frederic Funk, Joao Ferreira, Ivan Rana, Nick Kastelein and Nils Frommhold will race as well and counts as very dangerous opponents to deal with.

Most eyes on Spirig, exciting battles expected
In the women’s race, most eyes will be on Nicola Spirig. There may be slightly fewer women at the start than men, but that doesn’t make the race any less interesting. The Swiss Spirig – who next year will become one of the first women to try to finish under eight hours at a Long Distance – is actually always strong during races and has set her sights on winning at ANFI CHALLENGE MOGAN-GRAN CANARIA.

The local female favourite is undoubtedly Sara Pérez Sala, who was the biggest surprise at CHALLENGE MIAMI last month. There she led the race for a long time during her debut at the longer distance and even though she eventually dropped to fourth place, she showed that she is a woman to be reckoned with at this distance.

At the same time, there are several women who will do anything to make things difficult for Spirig and Pérez. Swedish Lisa Norden, for example, an athlete with enormous experience and once second at the Olympics, wants nothing more than to win and also Katrina Matthews and Maja Stage-Nielsen seem to be ladies to keep an eye on. The Dutch Sarissa de Vries – previously strong in Spain – is considered a formidable outsider.