Unfortunately, although increasing the equivalents of 1a resulted in higher conversion of 2, lower yields of 3a were obtained as the non-interlocked triazole-containing macrocycle was challenging to remove. Varying the solvent did not improve either diastereoselectivity or conversion of 2 (ESI section S8). Applying the same conditions to (S)-1b, which features a bulkier i Pr ester, gave catenane 3b in 82% de, albeit the conversion of macrocycle 2 was somewhat diminished and the formation of oligomeric biproducts was increased, resulting in a low isolated yield (26%, entry 6). Surprisingly, (S)-1c gave poor stereoselectivity (58% de, entry 6) and low conversion of 2 (~25%).