The CrossFit competition is biggest off-season event for competitor in January and a big highlight for lovers of the Sport.

When:

• January 11-14 (individual athletes compete on January 11-12 and teams on January 13-14)

Where:

• Bayfront Park, Miami, Florida, USA.

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A post shared by The TYR Wodapalooza (@wodapalooza)

How Much Money:

• Total prize purse of U$ 567,000

The prize purse saw an increase of $67,000 compared to the previous year. First elite individuals will earn $75,000, with second and third taking home $30,000 and $20,000 respectively. This year, the distribution of funds will also be more evenly distributed to lower placing athletes.

How to Watch 2024 Wodapalooza

The Livestream of 2024 Wodapalooza will be available on Loud and Live’s YouTube page for each day of the competition.

The Livestreams are also divided depending on the stage people are competing, such as Tina Hills, Flager, Bayside, Elite, and there is even a Portuguese Livestream of the 2024 Wodapalooza.

At the time of writing, the Livestreams available were only for the first day of competition.

• Thursday – Elite

To see the other days, head on to Loud and Live YouTube’s page below.

Click here to see all the Livestream of 2024 Wodapalooza.

Athletes Competing

The roster for Individuals, teams (three members, same gender) and adaptive athletes were revealed only this week.

If you want to see the workouts programmed for this weekend of CrossFit competition, click here.

Here are the official competitors as of January 8^th.

Elite Women

• Abigail Domit
• Allison Weiss
• Andra Moistus
• Arielle Loewen
• Ashley Shoemaker
• Becca Merritt
• Bergros Bjornsdottir
• Briony Challis
• Callista Lang
• Caroline Stanley
• Christee Hollard
• Dani Speegle
• Elena Carratala Sanahuja
• Elizabeth Wishart
• Ellia Miller
• Ellie Turner
• Emily De Rooy
• Emily Rethwill
• Emily Rolfe
• Emma Cary
• Feeroozeh Saghafi
• Freya Moosbrugger
• Gabriela Migała
• Gabrielle Spenst
• Grace Walton
• Jessica Androsik
• Julia Hannaford
• Katie Canning
• Keara Napoli
• Lexi Neely
• Margaux Masset
• Matilde Oyen Garnes
• Nicolette Torreggiani
• Nina Vragovic
• Olivia Kerstetter
• Rebecca Fuselier
• Rebecka Vitesson
• Ro Scott
• Stacy Lerum
• Sydney Wells

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Elite Men

• Alex Vigneault
• Alexandre Caron
• Antonios Makaronas
• Arturo Torres
• Austin Hatfield
• Brent Fikowski
• Bronislaw Olenkowicz
• CJ Gerald
• Colten Mertens
• Connor Voltz
• Drake Lewis
• Evan Rogers
• Francis Pelletier
• Guilherme Malheiros
• Harry Lightfoot
• Henrik Haapalainen
• Jack Farlow
• Jack Rozema
• James Sprague
• John Wood
• Joshua Hong
• Juan Ignacio Sforzini
• Kaique Cerveny
• Kalyan Ribeiro De Souza
• Kevin Jurs
• Lucas Heuze
• Luke Parker
• Martin Feiferlik
• Nick Mathew
• Nikita Yundov
• Patrick Vellner
• Ricky Garard
• Roman Khrennikov
• Samuel Cournoyer
• Samuel Kwant
• Spencer Panchik
• Tanner Balazs
• Travon Benton
• William Bennett

Source: Wodapalooza Instagram

LATAM Cup Women

• Fernanda Dotto
• Sasha Nievas
• Mariana Meza
• Paulina Haro
• Camila Marca
• Ana Cecelia Martinez Hernandez
• Vera Valdez
• Mariangela Vargas
• Emily Andrade
• Aliadhy Bass

LATAM Cup Men

• Isaiah Vidal
• Luis Cacacho
• Manuel Gallegos
• Roldan Goldbaum
• Vinicius Stoelben

Elite Team — Women

• Firebarns Club
• Kolesnikov Team
• Kriger Meets TrainingCulture
• Leapin Lemurs
• Lifters Girls
• Limey Girls
• Lycan Gang
• Mile High Muscles
• NGH
• Plus Ultra
• Reebok Crew
• Rx Performance
• Stronger Than a 90s Trend
• Sweet Sticky Thicc and Pretty
• Team Bareen
• Team Frog Grips
• Team Ice Barrel
• Team Scandinadian
• Team Treta
• Three Queens
• Torian Black
• Trailer Park Girls
• US Army Warrior Fitness

Elite Team — Men

• Canadians from the East
• Complex Wodex
• Conquer Athlete
• CrossFit Mayhem the Empire
• DSM Performance TCC
• EFP
• Foxed Ferret Manatee Men
• Kinesis Black
• Krypton
• Los Hombres
• Maxlift Australia
• Mayhem Outlaws
• Midwest Cowboys
• Omnia
• Picsil Traincult
• Project Girona
• Rehab to Perform
• Soul Ab Squad
• Team Evolve
• Team Gorila 911
• Team GOWOD
• Team Overtake
• Team Picsil
• Team TYR
• Tenskills Pro 1
• The Strapping Young Lads
• Tres Leches
• Truecoach Traincult
• Velites Traincult

Rx — Women

• Amber Takara
• Andrea Chiovitti
• Aubriana Montplaisir
• Caitlin Bernardin
• Claire Truax
• Cynthia Lemieux
• Grace Lochner
• Hannah Erickson
• Janie Cheverie
• Juliana Cavalech Ferrarini
• Kacey Wells
• Kelly Benfey
• Kelsey Hays
• Lilly Rodriguez
• Logan Filo-Loos
• Lydia Fish
• Saraí Rodríguez Camacho
• Trista Smith

Rx — Men

• Austin Evans
• Brandon Foor
• Brandon Smith
• Christian Ramon
• Dalton Rodgers
• Jacob Heart
• Juan Manuel Seitun
• Luis Guillermo Nuñez Hernández
• Martin Miguel Gonzalez
• Max Krieg
• Michael Evans
• Nicolas Bedon
• Ricardo Marquez
• Robert Yates
• Ryley Humrighouse
• Samuel Proulx
• Sarin Suvanasai
• Selvan Ramjattan
• Tyler Wright

Rx Team — Women

• No Excuses
• 8th Day
• Army Warrior Fitness Team Black and Gold
• BC Babes
• Blues City Kool-Aid
• Comtrain – Young and Dangerous
• Conquer + Jack Nation
• Conquer East
• CrossFit Lévis Paradise
• CrossFit Papio Cornhuskers
• CSA X Evernox
• Danielle Did It
• Duddy Buddies
• DVPMT Athlete
• From Réunion to Miami
• Get Griddy
• Gucci Gang
• HT + The Twins
• It’s Britney B*tch
• Lagniappe Ladies
• Mo’Stacked
• Monster Gals
• Off the Grid X CJC Gains Gals
• Oh My Quad!
• Overpowered Glowsticks
• PGPA
• Pop Lock and Lift It
• PR OR ER
• Ruster MX
• Sabal Park
• TCP Tonic CrossFit
• Team Lift Heavy
• Team Milk
• TeamLDN Valkyrie
• Tenskills X Le Repere
• Thiccc and Quick
• Tori in the Middle
• Triple Trouble
• TTRU Dawgs
• Underpups

Rx Team — Men

• 519 Aiminals
• Battle Cancer Peak360
• Beauty and the Beefs
• Black Pardus México
• Brits Abroad
• Conquer Thicc Boys
• CrossDepot
• CrossFit Chicoutimi
• CrossFit Cobourg
• CrossFit Dos Hermanas
• CrossFit Downtown Heights
• CrossFit Hype Gold
• CrossFit Krypton
• East Coast Boyz
• Italians
• Jai L’Doua
• John 13-7
• Just Train HQ
• Kirkland Built
• Kryptons B Team
• Last Second
• Lords of Dogtown
• Nor Cal Boyz
• Ocfit Ft 1855
• Omertá
• Override 4K
• Pale Cheeks
• Pardon My French
• Starr Strength Aus
• Street Sharks
• Team Rhabdo
• That’ll Do Donkey
• Thunder Cats
• Ticos Y Un Mexa
• True North CrossFit
• Try That In a Small Town
• Two Cowboys and a Canuck
• Waterbear CrossFit
• WOD Wizards
• WodeoReview

Intermediate Team — Women

• 12th State
• ACA
• All Level CrossFit
• Ammo
• Barbiedottirs
• Blondes Have More Fun
• Caribbean Misfits
• CFB Breakfast Girls
• CFDE Solid Prog
• CFZ
• Chicago Ave CrossFit
• CrossFit 401
• CrossFit Breakthrough
• CrossFit PSC
• CrossFit Southie
• CrossFit Wicked
• CTA Five Two
• DEKA CrossFit
• DSM Performance
• Girls From the North
• Girls Just Wanna Have Sun
• Hot Girl Sh*t
• Kinesis Young Does
• Kingpinbones
• La Grotta Girls
• Ladies of MFLH
• Last Minute Crew
• Man Made KTX FIT
• MMM Good
• NAPP
• Ninja Creami’s
• On S’Arrache – CrossFit Lévis / Tenskills CF
• Peak180 Athletics
• Peninsula Lifetree
• Picsil Latinomix
• Pota Fàuss
• Pwrd by Coffee
• Rammer Jammers
• Ride or Die
• Running Better Than the Government
• Ruster THP
• Rx Gymnastics
• Sore Queens
• Surviving Not Thriving
• Tall, Medium, Small
• Team Flying V – MTL Girls
• Team Nutripure
• Team Proud
• Team Quadzilla
• Tenperformance
• Tenskills CrossFit Rookies
• The Doc, Scientist, & Engineer
• Thick Thighs, Thin Patience
• U.S.EH
• Unio Strong(er)
• Weight Listed
• Westchase Duo + DC
• Whooties
• Wonder Latinas

Intermediate Team — Men

• 2 and ½ Cali Boyz
• 3 Headed Goat
• 3 Idiots With a Plan
• Alfredo Sauce Doesn’t Exist
• Armada Mex
• Athlete Standard Black
• ATP Labs Trio
• Big Weights in the AM
• Black and Gold Fitt
• Bridgetown Boyz
• C4 Athletics
• CF Estrie
• CFLC
• Chaffing the Dream
• Chimera CF
• CrossFit Genas
• CrossFit Kalliste
• CrossFit Watauga
• Dog Fight Fitness
• Dos Hermanos Y Gringo
• Drama Kings
• DSM Performance FYK
• Essenox
• Fenrir Programming
• Gritsu
• Hombres De Los Anjoseph
• HRA Papis
• Human High Definition
• Luffy, Zorro E Sparrow
• Major Penalty
• Man Made
• Mediocre Movment
• MF Falcons
• Montreal Boyz
• Mugiwara
• N.W.A.
• North East Boys
• North Haven CrossFit Freedom
• Off the Grid CJC Gains
• PRs All Day
• Rack House Fitness
• Rakun CrossFit
• Southern Boom
• Team Basics
• Team Capladuria
• Team Peak DTSC
• Temperance Hype Boyz
• Tenskills Coutreau
• The CrossFit Squad
• The Method
• The Moist Boys
• The Movement Collective
• The Potatoes Sunshine
• The Vikings
• Três Leches
• Union Strong
• Whiskey Dawgs
• Wodaparuba
• Woof Pack Is Back
• World Camps Bulls

Open — Women

• Agustina Monopoli
• Alicia Zink
• Allegra Tveito
• Allison Kindle
• Alyissa Landri
• Anabell Gomez
• Annie Woodard
• Autumn Leviston
• Bethany Jackson
• Briana Graham
• Brooke Armstrong
• Camille Sanghera
• Cyndi LaPalme
• Danei Bowers
• Flavia Bonacía
• Genesis Ubeda
• Haddit Godoy
• Hannah Waddell
• Helen Yeater
• Jennifer Grim
• Jordan Deveraux
• Kady Taylor
• Katelyn Tooley
• Krista Jaworski
• Lilian Socorro
• Lisa Mariano
• Maggie Bouckaert
• Maya Di Stefano
• Michelle Lammi
• Naomie Koutchouk
• Natalie Reid
• Natasha Vives
• Paige Hennighan
• Shannon McCauley
• Stephanie Douglas
• Susan Vierling
• Suzanne Gray
• Tania Epremian
• Tina Mikulcik
• Zoe Rolph

Open — Men

• Alexandre Chausse-Fonseca
• Billy Nowitzke
• Brendan Wright
• Brian Mariano
• Cody Worden
• Dan Coulson
• Daniel Kidd
• Daniel Krymow
• David Camirand
• Donnie Sherman
• Dylan Wahlstrom
• Eric Lee
• Ernie Garza
• Esteban Castro
• Everette Holguin
• Felipe Delgadillo
• Glenn Gravengard
• Jacob Auge
• Jacob Smith
• Jason Byrd
• Jeff Nevins
• Jeffrey Paul Jr.
• Joel Perez
• John Rae
• Jonathan LaCroix
• Josue Rangel
• Juan Belandria
• Michael Johnson
• Moises Romero
• Oliver Rack
• Philip Best
• Rafael Arreaza
• Rafael Rey
• Rogelio Tovar
• Ryan Tallmadge
• Sean Yeslow
• William Pennewell
• Yoilbert Aranguren
• Ziad Melhaoui

Open Team — Women

• Ab CrossFit
• Barbelle Trinity
• Baystate Brawlers
• Beefcake Babes
• Eers and Blizzards
• Big Leagues
• CFDO Girls
• Cirque De Sore
• Crocs Snowbirds
• CrossFit 3090 Women
• CrossFit Regulate
• Daddies Love Our Snatches
• Free Agents
• Girl Squad
• Guns & Honeybuns
• Hangry Birds
• Hustlin’ Hunnies
• HWDPO: Hard Work Doesn’t Pay Off
• Hyte and Spicy
• Just the Kip
• Kippin’ It Real
• KJ CrossFit
• Life More, Chalk Less
• Maxabiliity Powerpuffs
• Mike’s Misfits
• Minism3
• Ninnik’s Plapurhut
• OCI Meets Waterside
• PCF Queens
• Power Buff Girls
• Royal Studio
• Team Ratchet
• Thatshype
• The 6ix On The Beach
• The Clean Queens
• The Sloppy Joes
• The Young & The Thickness
• Thicc As Thieves
• Three Girls One Snatch
• Three Peas In a Pod

Open Men — Men

• 3 Thicc Bchs
• 514 In Paradise
• Black Pardus Absoluto
• Canada Throwdown
• Cap City Canucks
• CrossFit 3090 Men
• CrossFit San Carlos
• CrossFit Strong Island
• Dumb & Dumbbells
• Favela Venceu
• Foggy Bottom of the Leaderboard
• Friends That Shine
• Fueled By Poutine
• Geaux Breauxs
• Golf Boyz & The Birdie
• Grit City Lions
• Hype Roosters
• Karmoy Boys
• Kona
• Les Wish Athèletes
• Los Trigres Del Norte
• M&NS
• Maxability Big Fish
• Maxability Just For Fun
• Move! We’re Gay
• Muskoka Grizzlies
• Ram Ranch: The Return
• Ripped Training Program
• Road to Rx
• Shelton Bros
• Supernova
• Swan Killers
• Swiss Alps

Rx Masters Team — Women

• Arklahoma
• Barbells and Bengay
• Cali Mamas
• Canadian Bacon
• Hype To Be Masters
• KAJ
• Masters Angels
• Team Mexico
• Team Redpill
• Wise Grit Ladies

Rx Masters Team — Men

• 2 Venecos 1 Gringo
• Danger Zone
• DNA
• Ham’s Crew
• Life Alert
• Magna Masters
• MF Fitness
• Old Italians Young
• The Business
• The Natural Disasters

Open Masters Team — Women

• CrossFit CSA
• CrossFit Encompass
• Grit & Grace
• Les Margaritas Du Lac
• Meny Mighty Moms
• Met In Miami
• Squat Girl Summer
• Team CrossFit Odense
• Whiskey Tango Fitness
• Woda Wonders 148

Open Masters Team — Men

• Bay State CrossFit
• Boxen Umeå
• Dad Bod…Older, Wiser, Slower
• Jersey Classics
• Juste Pour Bouger
• Mycroft Mayhem
• Pacemakers
• Team 178
• The Real Dads of CrossFit Strong Island
• Vintage Sexy

Masters 35-39 — Women

• Antea Longo
• Jessie Jo Young
• Kayleigh Walsh
• Lulu Faria
• Mallory Burda
• Marie-Eve Castonguay
• Mélody Andréani
• Michelle Palmer
• Rachel Lynass
• Samantha DeCristofaro

Masters 35-39 — Men

• Brandon Pastorek
• Breno Pinheiro
• Duke Burk
• Ivan Verdun
• Joshua Tarafa
• Matt Shorrock
• Michael French
• Ram Dover
• Travis Flannigan
• William Kane

Masters 40-44 — Women

• Ana Silva
• Asuka Burge
• Cristina Mainetti
• Elizabeth Lane
• Janet Dichter
• Jodi Pietrzyk
• Katrina LaClair
• Louise Cederblad
• Sophie Matthijs
• Stivalys Mendez

Masters 40-44 — Men

• Bill Lloyd
• Bradley Alcock
• Brandon Shuck
• Didier Leclercq
• Mareck Bigler
• Matt Lamberti
• Michael Walsh
• Nick Aranda
• Paul Delanoy
• Rudolph Berger

Masters 45-49 — Women

• Annie-Claude Delisle
• Barbara Macaluso
• Beth Thomas
• Brandi Cantwell
• Dania HOok
• Katrina Mattes
• Katrina Nichols
• Shellie Brickle
• Teresa Cuevas

Masters 45-49 — Men

• Cedric Frontini
• Chris Anderson
• Franck Attieh
• Maxime Lauzon
• Paul Desroches
• Ryan Bretag
• Shagel Butt
• Shawn Ramirez
• Stephen Vassallo
• Tony Kurz

Masters 50-54 — Women

• Giorgia Donato
• Lisa Freeman
• Lori Reed
• Stella Ladao
• Tracy Biro

Masters 50-54 — Men

• Benoit Desforges
• James Carkner
• Karsten “KP” Pfau
• Ramiro Gonzalez Amoedo
• Rodrigo Dölz Leon

Masters 55-59 — Women

• Ann-Britt Nilsson
• Erika Ritzer
• Julie Schaffer
• Marni Kallins
• Tiiu Maavere

Masters 55-59 — Men

• Jay Sanderson
• Kelly Barcol
• Kirk Williams
• Mark Sewell
• Sean Marsh

Masters 60+ — Women

• Betsy Vanderburgh
• Debbie Corwin
• Giannina Titus
• Jeannette Perret Gentil
• Sharon Evans

Masters 60+ — Men

• Bret Kurihara
• Christian Galy
• Daniel Ford
• Jose Luiz Vaz
• Ralph Bass

Teens 13-15 — Girls

• Autumn Sands
• Hayleigh Porrini
• Jeanne Asselin
• Keira McManus
• Maggie Sullivan
• Marley Francis
• Olivia Davis
• Phoebe Davis
• Tahlia Vosaki
• Tayah Bebzuck Marom

Teens 13-15 — Boys

• Akil Lopez
• Caden Cleaveland
• Facundo Salica
• Gavin Searcey
• Hunter Keith
• Jose Pablo Luna
• Leonardo Cruz
• Luke Valgos
• Maddox Metcalf
• Mourad Kady

Teens 16-18 — Girls

• Baylee Garnto
• Delia Moises
• Elsie Larson
• Hayes Willard
• Hayleigh Kanthack
• Kendall Gilmore
• Miley Wade
• Morgan Denofa
• Reese Littlewood
• Rylee Beebe

Teens 16-18 — Boys

• Caleb Buckmaster
• Clark Lawson
• Isaac Rojas
• Kai Chmielak
• Kyle Muckleroy
• Logan Jeune
• Lorenzo Pitruzzello
• Lukas Trovão
• Tindur Eliasen
• Yander Cacau

Rx Seated — Women

• Andrea Wilson
• Débora Roque
• Elizabeth Foster
• Geraldine Manríquez
• Neslie Bernardi

Rx Seated — Men

• Darren Thomas
• Jean-Christophe Marquestaut
• Lawrence Green
• Michael Egan
• Tom Miazga

Rx Standing Neuro — Women

• Alyssa Kobela
• Courtnei Lopez
• Faith Fordham
• Jules King
• Lauren Taylor

Rx Standing Neuro — Men

• Chris Schmulbach
• Elijah Sanchez
• George Simonds-Gooding
• Joshuah Robinson
• Russell Allmandinger

Rx Standing Upper — Women

• Christina Mazzullo
• Elaine De Rocco
• Jocelyn Casker
• Mia Van Rensburg
• Sandra Thiele

Rx Standing Upper — Men

• Breki Þordarson
• Casey Acree
• Josue Maldonado
• Lorenzo Casadei
• Rian Soares

Rx Standing Lower — Men

• Anthony Gutierrez
• Hildon Carvalho
• John Jarrett
• Omar Iglesias
• Vincent Cavazos

Open Seated — Men

• Adam Sivia

Open Standing — Women

• Allison Hansen
• Jessica Rausch
• Kirsten Kenny
• Mandy Drake
• Susan Gillson

Open Standing — Men

• Drew Selz
• Ethan Corregano
• Graham Giske
• Matthew Smith
• Samuel Lycett

Read More: Dates and Locations for the 2024 CrossFit Semifinals Revealed

The Dubai Fitness Championship came to an end on Sunday afternoon. A total of 29 women and 27 men competed at the capital of United Arab Emirates (UAE). And it was full on emotion for both men and women fighting for the top spot on the leaderboard.

In the men’s division, Ricky Garard, who missed the official season’s Semifinals after injuring himself in a mountain bike accident, competed earlier in the week in a team at the Down Under Championship. After the first day of events in Dubai, it seemed he would not be featuring among the podium athletes, with a terrible 25^th place in the first event, but respectable 6^th and 9^th in the consequent workouts.

However, it was on Sunday that he shifted to a higher gear in which he finished 2^nd, and took home the win in the last two events. Khrennikov, however, had already built a solid ground from event 3 and managed to stay on top of the game at all times until the final workout. On the other hand, Lazar Dukic saw his chance slip away after finishing 15^th on Saturday afternoon (event 5), but also finished strong on Sunday winning one event and finishing 4^th and 8^th respectively.

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A post shared by Dubai Fitness Championship (@dxbfitnesschamp)

In the women’s division, Karin Frey put a fine and consistent performance, but taking over the leaderboard since day 1 (just like Khrennikov). Besides the last event, in which she finished 6^th, she managed to get 5^th or better in every single event!

Andrea Solberg’s two event wins on Sunday helped her climb above French athlete Claudia Gluck to finish the podium.

Leaderboard

Men

1. Roman Khrennikov – 717 points
2. Ricky Garard – 628
3. Lazar Dukic – 605
4. Fabian Beneito Selles – 557
5. Aniol Ekai – 531

You can see the full leaderboard here.

Women

1. Karin Frey – 702 points
2. Andrea Solberg – 633
3. Claudia Gluck – 619
4. Manon Angonese – 552
5. Elisa Fuliano – 549

You can see the full leaderboard here.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dubai Fitness Championship (@dxbfitnesschamp)

If you missed out on the action, you can check out the Livestream that happened for days 2 and 3 here.

Last year, Spanish athlete Fabian Beneito won in a technicality after finishing with the same points as 2^nd placed Moritz Fiebig – and they’re both competing this year again! On the women’s side, it was a bit smoother for Karin Frey who was crowned the winner, but the fight for the podium was intense until the last event. The year before, Laura Horvath and Roman Khrennikov won the tournament.

How to Watch the 2023 Dubai Fitness Championship

Just like in 2022, the first day of the competition will not be livestream. Below you will find the videos made available at the time of writing. They are all from Dubai Fitness Championship’s YouTube channel.

Day 2

Day 3

Athletes Competing

The competition is an invitation-only style. This year, many of the top athletes from the CrossFit Games are not in the roster. In the men’s division, three finished in the top 10 at the Games: Roman Khrennikov (3^rd), Chandler Smith (7^th), and Lazar Dukic (9^th). In the women’s division, the best ranked athlete at the Games who is also competing at the Dubai Fitness Championship is Emma Tall (11^th) and Emily Rolfe (12^th).

However, one big name that is returning this year is Ricky Garard. The Australian athlete missed Semifinals and, subsequently the Games, after injuring himself in a mountain bike accident.

Garard is in full gear after missing a big portion of competitions. He competed at the Rogue Invitational six weeks ago. He also competed earlier this week at the Down Under Championship. He was part of the team who finished 2^nd overall.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ricky Mac (@rickygarard)

As you can see in the picture above, Chandler Smith also competed at the Down Under Championship and he is going to Dubai this weekend for another test of fitness.

Men’s Division

Note: names in bold are athletes who competed at the CrossFit Games as individuals this year.

1. Alex Kotoulas
2. Aniol Ekai
3. Ant Haynes
4. Guillaume Briant
5. Bronislaw Olenkowicz
6. Chandler Smith
7. Daniel Tai
8. David Shorunke
9. Elliot Simmonds
10. Fabian Beneito
11. Giorgos Karavis
12. Griffin Roelle
13. Javier Gonzalez
14. Jorge Fernandez
15. Kaique Cerveny
16. Kalyan Souza
17. Kristof Horvath
18. Lazar Dukic
19. Luka Dukic
20. Martin Cuervo
21. Michael Smith
22. Moritz Fiebig
23. Reggie Fasa
24. Ricky Garard
25. Roman Khrennikov
26. Simon Mantyla
27. Toby Buckland
28. Uldis Upenieks

Women’s Division

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Note: names in bold are athletes who competed at the CrossFit Games as individuals this year.

1. Alexia Williams
2. Allison Nguyen
3. Andrea Solberg
4. Brittany Weiss
5. Camilla Salomonsson Hellman
6. Claudia Gluck
7. Dara Paran
8. Devyn Kim
9. Elena Carratala Sanahuja
10. Elisa Fuliano
11. Emily Rolfe
12. Emma Tall
13. Evie Hollis
14. Hanna Karlsson
15. Ingrid Hodnemyr
16. Jacqueline Dalhstrom
17. Julia Kato
18. Karin Freyova
19. Kyra Milligan
20. Lauren Fisher
21. Luiza Marques
22. Maddy Harris
23. Manon Angonese
24. Mia Hesketh
25. Noortje Bleeker
26. Seher Kaya
27. Shahad Budebs
28. Silvia Garcia
29. Tayla Howe
30. Veslemoy Kollstad

Prize Purse

The total prize purse of the competition is $259,000.

Here is a rundown of how individual athletes might get their share of the prize purse:

1. $50,000
2. $30,000
3. $20,000
4. $10,000
5. $5,000
6. $2,500

From 7^th to 30^th = $500

Athletes also get a change of earning a bonus depending on how well they finish each of the workouts described.

The payout per workout during Finals is:

1. $2,000
2. $1,500
3. $1,000

Read More: Dates and Locations for the 2024 CrossFit Semifinals Revealed

The dates and locations of the 2024 CrossFit Semifinals are now official after CrossFit made an announcement on Tuesday. Similar to last year, athletes will be divided into 7 different Semifinals depending on their place of birth or, for some exceptions, where they live.

The Semifinals will take place during the weekend between May 17^th and June 2^nd. A total of 40 men, 40 women, and 30 teams will compete in each Semifinal event before moving on to the ultimate fitness test: the CrossFit Games which takes place in Fort Worth, Texas from August 8-11 2024.

2024 CrossFit Semifinals Dates and Locations

Europe Semifinal by French Throwdown

• Date:                                   May 17-19, 2024
• Region:                                Europe
• Venue:                                LDLC Arena
• Location:                            Décines-Charpieu, France
• Field:                                   40 Individuals, 30 Teams
• CrossFit Games Spots:    Five (5) Individual (minimum), Eight (8) Team 

Asia Semifinal by Far East Throwdown

• Date:                                   May 17-19, 2024
• Region:                                Asia                      
• Venue:                                Bexco – Centum City
• Location:                            Haeundae-gu, Busan, South Korea
• Field:                                   40 Individuals, 30 Teams
• CrossFit Games Spots:    Two (2) Individual (minimum), One (1) Team 

Oceania Semifinal by Torian Pro

• Date:                                   May 24-26, 2024
• Region:                                Oceania                             
• Venue:                                Pat Rafter Arena
• Location:                            Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
• Field:                                   40 Individuals, 30 Teams
• CrossFit Games Spots:    Three (3) Individual (minimum), Three (3) Team 

North America West Semifinal by West Coast Classic

• Date:                                   May 24-26, 2024
• Region:                                North America West                     
• Venue:                                Dignity Health Center
• Location:                            Carson, California, United States
• Field:                                   40 Individuals, 30 Teams
• CrossFit Games Spots:    Five (5) Individual (minimum), Seven (7) Team 

North America East Semifinal by Syndicate Crown

• Date:                                   May 31-June 2, 2024
• Region:                                North America East
• Venue:                                Knoxville Civic Coliseum
• Location:                            Knoxville, Tennessee, United States
• Field:                                   40 Individuals, 30 Teams
• CrossFit Games Spots:    Five (5) Individual (minimum), Eight (8) Team 

South America Semifinal by Copa Sur

• Date:                                   May 31-June 2, 2024
• Region:                                South America                 
• Venue:                                Arena Carioca 1
• Location:                            Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Field:                                   40 Individuals, 30 Teams
• CrossFit Games Spots:    Two (2) Individual (minimum), Two (2) Team 

Africa Semifinal by Renegade Games

• Date:                                   May 31-June 2, 2024
• Region:                                Africa                   
• Venue:                                Emerald Resort and Casino
• Location:                            Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, South Africa
• Field:                                   40 Individuals, 30 Teams
• CrossFit Games Spots:    One (1) Individual (minimum), One (1) Team 

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As you might have noticed, each Semifinal has a “minimum” number of Games-qualifying spots. That is because of CrossFit’s worldwide ranking system.

The implementation of the new global ranking system plays a decisive role in determining the allocation of Games-qualifying slots for each of the Semifinal competitions. The number of athletes within the top 100 of the updated ranking system participating in a given Semifinal directly influenced the probability of that specific event receiving an additional invitation to the CrossFit Games.

You can see the entire ranking system updated in this link. The list was updated after this year’s CrossFit Games with Jeffrey Adler surpassing Medeiros and Emma Lawson climbing up to the 2^nd position overall behind Laura Horvath.

Source: Photo Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

“We are excited about announcing these locations with these great events to execute on the upcoming semifinals,” said Dave Castro, General Manager of Sport and Education at CrossFit. “It will be a first-class experience and we are looking forward to how the competitions will shake out.”

Seven regions will host qualifying athletes who will be invited based on their country of citizenship for the third stage of competition. Athletes will know which region they will compete in (if they qualify) upon CrossFit Open registration.

However, a few exceptions are expected. For example, this year we saw 5 athletes receiving region exemption, including Roman Khrennikov.

In addition, CrossFit will standardize and program all tests for the entire season, including the Semifinals, and all individual athletes and teams from the same affiliate will compete at the same Semifinal.

Source: Photo courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Age-group and adaptive athletes will compete in an online Semifinal to determine who will advance to the CrossFit Games.

• The top 200 athletes from each age group will advance to the virtual Age-Group Semifinal to determine who will advance to the Games.
• The top 20 athletes from each adaptive division will advance from the Adaptive CrossFit Open by WheelWOD to the virtual Adaptive CrossFit Semifinal, also designed by WheelWOD.

Dates for the 2024 CrossFit Semifinals for Teens, Masters and Adaptive athletes:

• Age-Group Semifinal: May 8 – 13, 2024.
• Adaptive CrossFit Semifinal by WheelWOD: May 8 – 13, 2024.

Check out two more links about the 2024 CrossFit season you might have missed.

2024 CrossFit Season Details Revealed

Dave Castro Reveals More Details About the 2024 CrossFit Games in Texas

The thrilling weekend reached its pinnacle as Laura Horvath and Pat Vellner emerged victorious, securing the CrossFit championship at the 2023 Rogue Invitational. In the Strongman division, Mitchell Hooper claimed the top spot.

Rogue Invitational is one of the biggest CrossFit competition outside the official season. That also reflects on the prize purse athletes compete for, bringing in much attention of the media and athletes themselves to do their best.

Source: Rogue Invitational Instagram

How Much Money Did Athletes Earn at the 2023 Rogue Invitational

And how much money is involved for athletes competing at the 2023 Rogue Invitational in Texas? First, remember how the prize purse was calculated?

1. Rogue has provided a 1 million dollar cash investment.
2. $275,000 of Bitcoin purchased at $16,000 per coin. Any growth on this coin will add to the purse and will be paid out at the valuation at the time the prize purse is locked.
3. $5 per attendee ticket sold will be added to the purse.
4. 10% of registration fees for the 2023 online qualifier, “The Q”
5. 10% of registration fees for the 2023 community event, “The C”
6. $5.00 for every Rogue Invitational T-shirt sold
7. $5.00 for every pair of GORUCK Ballistic Trainers sold on roguefitness.com
8. Sponsors will have the ability to make direct contributions to the purse

One interesting thing about the prize purse is that it goes up with each day because of tickets sales and shirts sales. However, if you read our article a few days before the start of the events, the prize purse totalled U$ 1, 631,595.77.

However, now, after the competition is over, the prize purse declined by almost $2,000. That is likely due to the volatility of Bitcoin. But, in the bigger picture, since the prize purse are divided by the 20 individual athletes competing in the CrossFit division and the 10 Strongman competitors, the end result for each athlete is not something to worry about.

Ultimately, the prize purse was U$1,629,676.17.

So how much money did athletes earn at the 2023 Rogue Invitational? According to Rogue’s rules, each participant took a percentage of the prize purse home with them depending on final placement.

Women:

Men

Strongman

2023 Rogue Invitational

When: October 26-29, 2023

Where: Dell Diamond Stadium in Round Rock, Texas, USA

How many competitors: 20 men and 20 women in the individual division

Other divisions: Not only some of the best elite CrossFit athletes will be competing, but also 10 participants go head-to-head in Strongman events, and 9 men and 7 women will take part in the Legends, a friendly CrossFit competition with names such as Rich Froning, Josh Bridges, Kari Pearce and Sam Briggs.

Missed out on the action? Watch the 2023 Rogue Invitational Livestream Here

The top of the leaderboard changed a lot during the 4-day event for CrossFit athletes in Texas this weekend. Addler and Toomey finished event 1 on the top, on Friday it was Khrennikov and Horvath who took the lead. Saturday, it all changed again with Vellner taking over and Toomey regaining top spot.

However, what counts is the placement on the last day and that is how Vellner managed to maintain his lead ahead of Adler and Khrennikov, while Horvath won the last event to beat Tia-Clair Toomey in the standings.

2023 Rogue Invitational Final Standings

Women

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1. Laura Horvath – 780 points
2. Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr – 770
3. Emma Lawson – 650
4. Gabriela Migala – 530
5. Alex Gazan – 590
6. Emma Cary – 550
7. Danielle Brandon – 540
8. Arielle Loewen – 510
9. Dani Speegle – 505
10. Manon Angonese – 460
11. Christine Kolenbrander – 455
12. Lauren Fisher – 420
13. Paige Powers – 405
14. Paige Semenza – 390
15. Emily Rolfe – 330
16. Bethany Flores – 320
17. Karin Freyova – 305
18. Kyra Milligan – 295
19. Shelby Neal – 265
20. Elena Carratala Sanahuja – 235

Men

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1. Pat Vellner – 660 points
2. Jeff Adler – 640
3. Roman Khrennikov – 610
4. Brent Fikowski – 610
5. Ricky Garard – 565
6. Travis Mayer – 555
7. Jayson Hopper – 545
8. Dallin Pepper – 545
9. Jay Crouch – 540
10. Noah Ohlsen – 530
11. Jelle Hoste – 485
12. Bjorgvin Karl Gudmundsson – 475
13. Chandler Smith – 455
14. Lazard Dukic – 445
15. Tudor Magda – 435
16. Bayley Martin – 375
17. Victor Hoffer – 360
18. Will Moorad – 300
19. Garrett Clark – 255
20. Jonne Koski – 10 points (withdrawn)

Strongman

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1. Mitchell Hooper – 42 points
2. Tom Stoltman – 40
3. Mateus Kieliszkowski – 31.5
4. Evan Singleton – 28.5
5. Bobby Thompson – 25.5
6. Maxime Boudreault – 23.5
7. Thomas Evans – 23
8. Luke Stoltman – 22
9. Oleksii Novikov – 21.5
10. Trey Mitchell – 11.5

Horvath, Vellner Win 2023 Rogue Invitational

The 2023 Rogue Invitational began on Thursday afternoon with only a single event for individuals. Texas heavy comprised of running with a ruck, without one, and pulling a sled.

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Tia-Clair Toomey took the win to make a big statement. This was her first official competition after giving birth to her first child Willow in May. In the men’s division, Adler finished ahead of Hoste and Khrennikov.

Although the previous CrossFit Games champions won the first event, it all changed on the second day (Friday) when two more workouts programmed were thrown at the athletes.

Garard and Khrennikov won events 2 and 3, while Alex Gazan and Laura Horvath took the win for the same events in the women’s division. At the end of the day, Khrennikov went to sleep on top of the rank with a 20-point lead ahead of Adler and Vellner. Horvath had a 5-point lead on Toomey and 45 points in front of 3^rd place Gabriela Migala.

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But then Saturday shifted everything again. This was the day that provided Pat Vellner his big advantage that gave him a chance to win come the end of the weekend. Although Vellner started Saturday in 3^rd, he finished the day with an impressive 90-point lead ahead of Adler.

And the crazy thing is that Vellner did not win any of the 3 events on Saturday, but everything fell into place for him to keep distancing himself from the other competitors.

In the women’s division, in a cat-and-mouse game, Toomey took over Horvath again in the leaderboard with a minimum 5-point lead over the Hungarian athlete. Emma Lawson, 3^rd placed when lights went out, was 90 points behind the leader.

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The final day had come and the last three events would shift the women’s leaderboard once again. Horvath won event 7, but Toomey made up the difference in event 8. Before the very last event, the two athletes were tied in points in 1^st place.

But Horvath left any doubts behind her. She won the final event 30 seconds ahead of Tia-Clair Toomey to claim her crown at the 2023 Rogue Invitational. Emma Lawson finished 2^nd, cementing her overall 3^rd place on the podium.

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The men’s division was less intense, as Vellner only had to do damage control. He finished events 7, 8, and 9 in 9^th, 10^th and 10^th, respectively. That was enough to keep him 20 points ahead of Adler. The fellow Canadian had a closer battle with Khrennikov, but event 8 and the last one solidified his silver medal.

Did you enjoy the 2023 Rogue Invitational? Do you want to know how well we, at BOXROX, guessed the main athletes that would compete this weekend? Then click on the link below.

Who To Watch at the 2023 Rogue Invitational

How to Watch the 2023 Rogue Invitational

2023 Rogue Invitational

When: October 26-29, 2023

Where: Dell Diamond Stadium in Round Rock, Texas, USA

How many competitors: 20 men and 20 women in the individual division; 10 in the strongman division; 9 men and 9 women in the legends division

Other divisions: Not only some of the best elite CrossFit athletes will be competing, but also 10 participants go head-to-head in Strongman events, and 9 men and 7 women will take part in the Legends, a friendly CrossFit competition with names such as Rich Froning, Josh Bridges, Kari Pearce and Sam Briggs.

2023 Rogue Invitational Livestream Here

List of All CrossFit Athletes Competing Individually

The final list of athletes invited and confirmed to the 2023 Rogue Invitational is official. Usually, the top athletes from the CrossFit Games receive an automatic invitation to Rogue. For those wanting to compete with the best of the best, they had to go through an online qualifier.

Of those who competed online, the top 5 men and 5 women then received an invitation to compete in Round Rock.

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Some athletes might choose to refuse the invitation; Rogue organisers then proceed to backfill the position until they have a confirmed 20 athletes on the field for each of the individual categories.

Here is a full list of the 20 individual athletes confirmed to appear at the 2023 Rogue Invitational.

Men:

Source: Courtesy of Lazar Dukic

1. Jeff Adler
2. Pat Vellner
3. Roman Khrennikov
4. Brent Fikowski
5. Dallin Pepper
6. Jonne Koski
7. Chandler Smith
8. Jay Crouch
9. Lazar Dukic
10. Jelle Hoste
11. Bjorgvin Karl Gudmundsson
12. Bayley Martin
13. Will Moorad
14. Noah Ohlsen
15. Ricky Garard
16. Victor Hoffer
17. Travis Mayer
18. Tudor Magda
19. Garrett Clark
20. Jayson Hopper

Women:

1. Laura Horvath
2. Emma Lawson
3. Arielle Loewen
4. Gabriela Migala
5. Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr
6. Alex Gazan
7. Paige Semenza
8. Bethany Flores
9. Emma Cary
10. Danielle Brandon
11. Paige Powers
12. Emily Rolfe
13. Shelby Neal
14. Karin Freyova
15. Dani Speegle
16. Manon Angonese
17. Elena Carratala Sanahuja
18. Lauren Fisher
19. Kyra Milligan
20. Christine Kolenbrander

Who to Watch at the 2023 Rogue Invitational

In 2022, Justin Medeiros, Laura Horvath and Oleksii Novikov were crowned champions. This year, only Medeiros is not competing again.

In the women’s division, one name draws more attention than all other. Tia-Clair Toomey is back in business. She is the most dominant female CrossFit athlete in history, but that is only one of the reasons to watch her compete this weekend at the 2023 Rogue Invitational.

Source: Tia-Clair Toomey Instagram

The Australian athlete had to sit out during this year’s CrossFit Games to give birth to her first child Willow in May, just two months before the Finals. With her out, Laura Horvath managed to win the title of Fittest Woman on Earth, which was the first time someone other than Toomey had claimed since 2017.

Now it’s been 7 months since she had the baby and time to get back to her fitness levels. The fact that she is competing again is an incredible feat, but if you know anything about Tia-Clair Toomey is that she is out-of-this-world good. She actually might have a chance to win this weekend as a warning for future competitors that the 2024 CrossFit Games is going to be tough for everyone again if she steps onto the competition floor.

Two other names people must include in their bets to win this weekend are Laura Horvath, the current Fittest Woman on Earth, and Emma Lawson, the 18-year-old athlete from Canada who finished 2^nd at the Games this year.

BOXROX believes Gabriela Migala will be fighting for a spot on the podium, and other dark horses include Bethany Flores, Emma Cary and Arielle Loewen.

The men’s division is fully stacked with who’s who from the CrossFit Games. The 12 first-ranked at this year’s Games have confirmed their presence at the 2023 Rogue Invitational.

 Although Jeff Adler and Pat Vellner deservedly will be battling for the top spot, our pick for who to watch this year is Roman Khrennikov. The Russian athlete wore the leader’s jersey at the CrossFit Games this year for most of the events, but then got injured, couldn’t finish any of the last 2 events and still finished with a bronze medal.

It will be interesting to see how Khrennikov has recovered from his foot injury and, if so, how he might come back with a title in American soil.

Jeff Adler deservedly won the 2023 CrossFit Games. He snatched the leader’s jersey from Khrennikov before the Russian injured his foot and maintained the leadership to the end. He also had a nearly perfect 2023 CrossFit season by winning the Open alongside Mal O’Brien, the Semifinal and the Finals. He finished 5^th worldwide during the Quarterfinals, the only competition he didn’t win in the official CrossFit season.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Alongside Adler are Canadian besties Vellner and Fikowski. Both are incredibly well-rounded athletes who could take up the chance to climb up the ranks to the podium when others fail.

Our top pick for the surprise of the year at the 2023 Rogue Invitational is Ricky Garard. He injured his shoulder during a mountain bike accident weeks before the Semifinals and had to withdraw from competing in 2023. He was one of the top athletes poised to fight for the podium in Wisconsin, he might as well accomplish it in Texas this time.

Other dark horses who might fight for the podium, in our opinion, are Chandler Smith, Lazar Dukic, and Dallin Pepper.

Who do you think could win this weekend’s competition?

Prize Purse

And how much money is involved for athletes competing at the 2023 Rogue Invitational in Texas? The answer is not definitive yet, as the prize purse increases depending on a few factors:

1. Rogue has provided a 1 million dollar cash investment.
2. $275,000 of Bitcoin purchased at $16,000 per coin. Any growth on this coin will add to the purse and will be paid out at the valuation at the time the prize purse is locked.
3. $5 per attendee ticket sold will be added to the purse.
4. 10% of registration fees for the 2023 online qualifier, “The Q”
5. 10% of registration fees for the 2023 community event, “The C”
6. $5.00 for every Rogue Invitational T-shirt sold
7. $5.00 for every pair of GORUCK Ballistic Trainers sold on roguefitness.com
8. Sponsors will have the ability to make direct contributions to the purse

At the time of writing, the prize purse totals U$ 1, 631,595.77.

This is already a bigger prize purse compared to last year’s where a total of $1,272,490 was divided among the athletes depending on their ranking.

Just like in previous years, Rogue Invitational will make one main Livestream available for free. However, what is new this time, is that people will be able to choose to pay an additional fee to increase their access to other cameras during the Livestream. It’s called the Iron Game Premium viewing option (more details below).

2023 Rogue Invitational

When: October 26-29, 2023

Where: Dell Diamond Stadium in Round Rock, Texas, USA

How many competitors: 20 men and 20 women in the individual division; 10 in the strongman division; 9 men and 9 women in the legends division

Other divisions: Not only some of the best elite CrossFit athletes will be competing, but also 10 participants go head-to-head in Strongman events, and 9 men and 7 women will take part in the Legends, a friendly CrossFit competition with names such as Rich Froning, Josh Bridges, Kari Pearce and Sam Briggs.

In 2022, Justin Medeiros, Laura Horvath and Oleksii Novikov were crowned champions. This year, only Medeiros is not competing again.

How to Watch the 2023 Rogue Invitational – Livestream

Divided by days, here are the Livestreams and how to watch the 2023 Rogue Invitational this weekend.

Thursday (Event 1):

Friday (Day 1):

Saturday (Day 2):

Sunday (Day 3):

Iron Game Premium:

If you want, you can pay a fee to increase the options of cameras you have to watch the events as they unfold.

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• U$25 fee

Once purchased, you will have added 4 different streams to your arsenal: Iron Game Tailgate, drone cam, featured Athlete Cam, and wide cam.

The Iron Game Tailgate stream is hosted by Pat Sherwood and it will bring elite athletes (both CrossFit and Strongman) for a more informal style of conversation with personal insights and immediate reactions to what’s going down on the field as events are happening.

Some of the confirmed athletes that will take part are Mat Fraser, Rich Froning, Justin Medeiros, Katrin Davidsdottir, Annie Thorisdottir, Annie Sakamoto, Brian Friend, Hafthor Bjornsson and more.

“Get a bird’s-eye view from our drone cameras, jump to our Wide Cams for an all-seeing view, or watch our Featured Athlete Cam, tracking one competitor up-close and personal through each workout.”

You can access the Iron Gam Premium content here.

Prize Purse

Source: Photos courtesy of Rogue

And how much money is involved for athletes competing at the 2023 Rogue Invitational in Texas? The answer is not definitive yet, as the prize purse increases depending on a few factors:

1. Rogue has provided a 1 million dollar cash investment.
2. $275,000 of Bitcoin purchased at $16,000 per coin. Any growth on this coin will add to the purse and will be paid out at the valuation at the time the prize purse is locked.
3. $5 per attendee ticket sold will be added to the purse.
4. 10% of registration fees for the 2023 online qualifier, “The Q”
5. 10% of registration fees for the 2023 community event, “The C”
6. $5.00 for every Rogue Invitational T-shirt sold
7. $5.00 for every pair of GORUCK Ballistic Trainers sold on roguefitness.com
8. Sponsors will have the ability to make direct contributions to the purse

At the time of writing, the prize purse totals U$ 1, 619, 370.80.

This is already a bigger prize purse compared to last year’s where a total of $1,272,490 was divided among the athletes depending on their ranking.

Thorisdottir broke the news yesterday in a somewhat simplistic post on Instagram. In a photo, alongside husband/coach Frederik Aegidius and their daughter Freyja, she simply wrote “2^nd of May” followed by a heart emoji.

In the photo, the three of them are walking down a pier towards the sunset, with Freyja in between the couple, and Annie Thorisdottir holding hands with a teddy bear, signifying the second child to come into their lives.

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The news comes 3 days before the first event at the 2023 Rogue Invitational. Thorisdottir had previously confirmed she would be competing, but changed her mind. Now, 18-year-old Shelby Neal has been confirmed to take her place.

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Neal has made her debut as an elite individual athlete at the CrossFit Games this year and finished 19^th in the world. In the past two years, she competed as a teen at the Games finishing 6^th and 8^th respectively.

Hopes are that Thorisdottir will come back stronger than ever if she decides to continue competing in CrossFit as an individual among the best. She gave birth to her first child back in August 2020. The following year, she finished with a bronze medal around her neck at the 2021 CrossFit Games.

In 2022, she decided to go team where they finished 4^th. She then made a return to individuals this year, finishing 13^th overall. Iceland Annie was the first female athlete to win the CrossFit Games twice in a row (2011 and 2012).

Read More: Athlete Svetlana Veselova Says She Will Sue CrossFit After Failed Drug Test

In a press release, CrossFit unveiled three new partnerships across various divisions: WheelWOD Games (for adaptive), Pit Teen Throwdown (for 14-17 teens), and Legends Championship (for masters 35+ athletes).

This means that for athletes in those divisions, the road to the finals will be different compared to elite competitors in the individual and team divisions. It was announced in late September that the CrossFit Games will be held in the Dickies Arena, in Fort Worth, Texas, next year.

However, that won’t be the case for teens, masters and adaptive athletes – they will not share the same stage as the elite athletes (individuals and teams) for the grand finale.

Source: Photo courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

What Will Change for the 2024 CrossFit Games

As mentioned above, men and women competing in the elite division (individual) and teams will not see any changes to the path to the CrossFit Games. Teens and masters will have changes for the finals only, while adaptive athletes will see a complete overhaul of their CrossFit season.

Teens and Masters

For Masters and Teenage Athletes in 2024, the season kicks off with the online Open, followed by the online Quarterfinals and Semifinals. This means that, up to the Semifinals, nothing will change for athletes in those divisions and CrossFit HQ will still design the tests during those stages.

However, things change when it comes to the in-person finals. Yes, both Masters and Teens will continue to have an in-person last set of tests, but it will be handled by the organisations partnered with mentioned earlier.

After Semifinals are concluded, qualifying masters athletes (ages 35-65+) will be “advancing to the Legends Championship for an in-person final.”

For teens, the top athletes will move on “before competing in the Pit Teen Throwdown.”

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This means that the finals for teens and master athletes will not be in Fort Worth in 2024, the same place where elite men, women and teams will be competing for the title of Fittest on Earth.

Related: Dave Castro Reveals More Details About the 2024 CrossFit Games in Texas

Where will teens and masters compete in the end?

CrossFit said it will reveal places and dates for the season at a later stage, including registration for the 2024 CrossFit Open.

However, we already know that the Pit Throwdown will be taking place in Three Rivers, Michigan. This is the same place where the competition has been taking place in the last few years.

According to their official website, “The Throwdown features the rugged diversity of our 65-acre fitness ranch, a former gravel pit with woods and water, sand and hills, and our 10,000-SQ FT gym, Triple River CrossFit.”

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However, we are still very much in the dark about the Master’s division. All we know is that the Finals will be taken over and programmed by Legends Championship. The Legends Championship, supporting top masters athletes worldwide, will host its 2023 edition in Tempe, Arizona, from December 7 to 10. We do not know if the finals for masters next year will happen in the same place as this year.

Adaptive Divisions

The Adaptive Athletes competition, managed entirely by WheelWOD, an organization with 11 years of experience, promises a fair and inclusive competition for CrossFit’s adaptive athlete community. The collaboration expands the competitive divisions for adaptive athletes from 8 to 15, providing a broader opportunity for athletes to advance to the in-person final.

In other words, WheelWOD will take over all the steps of the CrossFit season for adaptive athletes, from the “Open” all the way to the “Games” – these are in quotes as we do not know if they will be called Open or Games like CrossFit HQ does.

Source: Photo courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

It is still unknown where or when these athletes will compete for CrossFit’s next season. The WheelWOD Games 2023 is taking place from November 30 through December 3 in Raleigh, North Carolina and it will encompass athletes from 28 divisions.

The Pros and Cons of this 2024 CrossFit Season Overhaul for Teen, Masters and Adaptive Athletes

Any change is bound to bring something good, and maybe something bad. Here are some pros and cons we at BOXROX think should be addressed.

Pros:

As highlighted in the press release, CrossFit General Manager of Sport and Education Dave Castro explained the changes “will benefit each division in significant ways, most importantly more than doubling qualifying spots for masters and teens and allowing every adaptive division a place at the in-person championship.”

More adaptive divisions and more athletes will be competing in the end, which can only be positive for the Sport’s growth.

With each final being taken care of by different organisations, there will be better coverage of those events for people who actually want to see them. As Kevin Ogar, head judge and coach for WheelWOD put it:

“We will now have more eyes on, more exposure, more divisions, and unparalleled opportunities for athletes to not only grow in the sport but also to drive its evolution.”

Although he was talking specifically about the adaptive community, it can be broadened to teens and masters as well. Giving more exposure to those athletes will help them expand to a broader audience, hopefully give them more opportunities to live off the Sport, and attract more people to compete in the end.

Source: Wodapalooza / Courtesy of ATA

Cons:

Not all are rainbows and butterflies when we are talking about the changes CrossFit has made for the official 2024 season.

First and foremost, if you’ve read all paragraphs above, you might have noticed how little we at BOXROX used the term “CrossFit Games” or “Fittest on Earth.” That is because, honestly, CrossFit in their press release also refrained from using those terms – in contrast, CrossFit has used the terms “championship” and “final.”

One of the things nobody liked about the 2023 CrossFit Games was the Livestream coverage of masters, teens or adaptive.  It simply was a stationary camera, with no commentary, far away from the field where athletes were competing. CEO Don Faul addressed the situation at a press conference and said CrossFit made a tough decision about the Livestream coverage. “Sometimes we got to make tough calls. We’d love to be able to do everything, pragmatically that is not possible,” he said.

And now, with the “Games Athlete” or “#GamesBound” staple probably going out of the window for masters, teens and adaptive divisions, it seems like CrossFit is simply offloading its responsibilities to other organisations and hoping for the best.

Read More: 2023 CrossFit Games – 4 Things We Liked and 4 We Didn’t

Falcon 1 CrossFit in Bratislava hosted Murph this year, bringing together members of its welcoming and dedicated community, alongside the members of CrossFit Senec.

Róbert Rybanský, owner of both CrossFit boxes, joined the action with the collective members from each Box.

What is Murph?

The CrossFit Murph Challenge is a grueling test of physical and mental endurance that honours the sacrifice and service of fallen Navy SEAL Lt. Michael P. Murphy.

The workout consists of a one-mile run, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 squats, and another one-mile run, all done while wearing a weighted vest.

The Workout

Check out how the action went down.

All the photos were taken by Stevie D, follow him on facebook and instagram.

Róbert Rybanský, Owner and Founder

The owner sums up the ethos of his Box, “In a word: COMMUNITY. It takes a long time, but it’s worth it.”

“I lived in sports almost all my life (martial arts, football, handball, Slovak handball). I started in gastronomy and worked in Bratislava companies as a bartender, which taught me precision at work.”

“I worked out, but it soon became clear to me that this would not be my way.”

“The beginning of my path to something of my own was that I had my eyes open and seized the opportunity. And so, I founded the first Gym focused on functional training – Iron Life gym, with an area of about 300 square meters, I was 26 years old. In 2016 I opened my second Gym, CrossFit Senec – already as the official CrossFit 2020 – after the successful CrossFit Senec it’s time to move on: we open Falcon 1 CrossFit”

Address and Contact Details

+421 917 317 906

E-mail: info@falcon1crossfit.sk

Address : Prievozská 34, Bratislava

Website

Wodapalooza has, for the past 12 years, become a recurring CrossFit competition that brings many of the most famous athletes in a head-to-head competition in Miami at the beginning of the year, unofficially kickstarting the CrossFit season.

Now, the same people behind the Miami tournament have come up with another competition, promising to bring the same vibes from its counterpart: it’s called TYR Wodapalooza SoCal.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

TYR Wodapalooza SoCal: the New CrossFit Tournament in California

“Introducing TYR WZA SoCal, our newest home to a second annual Wodapalooza Fitness Festival.” That is how the organisers of the event broke the news yesterday on their official Instagram profile.

• When: September 20-22, 2024
• Where: Huntington Beach, California

According to their official page, the TYR Wodapalooza SoCal will have “multiple stages with 1,000 competing athletes from around the world, brand activations and fitness lifestyle experiences, including educational seminars and workshops.”

This is similar to the already famous Wodapalooza in Miami where athletes from around the world compete in a weekend of fun and extravaganza.

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Not all relevant information has been released yet. For example, it is still unclear how participants can register for the competition, how they will qualify for the later stages and how Miami and SoCal editions will be connected.

Earlier this year, the winners of Wodapalooza Miami were Paige Powers and Ricky Garard in the individual divisions. For the team’s divisions, the champions were Canadian PB&J and Team BPN.

2023 Miami Wodapalooza Winners

Livestream of North America East & Rebel Renegade Games HERE

But before we go into it, we will be talking exclusively about the individual athletes, although this weekend both individuals and teams will be competing side-by-side.

North America East – CrossFit Semifinals Predictions

Semifinals will have different Games-qualifying spots depending on the strength-of-field. The North America East is one that provides the most invitations.

• Top 11 women will be invited to the Games
• Top 12 men will be invited to the Games

The line-up is stacked with big names on both men and women category. Here are our picks.

Men’s Division

Due to a new rule in CrossFit’s competition, Roman Khrennikov will be competing as an American in the North America East Semifinal this year, instead of the Asian continent where he is from. The current 2^nd Fittest Man on Earth is the favourite to stand on the podium, possibly at the top, come Sunday afternoon.

Three names we believe are also in the fight for podium finishers are Jeff Adler (he won the Open this year and is 6^th at the new worldwide ranking system), Dallin Pepper (1^st in Quarterfinals this year), and Noah Ohlsen (9x Games athlete and this is his last year as an individual).

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

On the men’s side, we also have a few names who could be battling for the 12 invitations that will be given such as Sam Cournoyer, Spencer and Saxon Panchik, Will Moorad and Alex Vigneault. But our dark horse vote goes to Jack Farlow and James Sprague – both have been to the Games in 2019 as teens.

Women’s Division

Just like the men’s division, the women’s is stacked with high-end CrossFit athletes. However, arguably the biggest star of them has recently pulled out of competition. Mal O’Brien said she was faced with challenges that demanded her attention and wouldn’t be competing this weekend at the North America East Semifinal.

That is not to say the competition will be without elite-level athletes. Our overall pick to win this weekend is Emma Lawson. The teenager surprised everyone last year at the Game when she even wore the leader shirt for a few events, before falling to 6^th place overall.

Followed by Emma Lawson will be other Games athlete who made an impact last year such as Brooke Wells (5^th), Amanda Barnhart (14^th), and Danielle Brandon (4^th).

Other athletes that we know will be fighting, and possibly getting, their Games invitation at the end of the weekend are Alexis Raptis, Paige Powers and Emma Cary. However, our votes for dark horse go to newcomer Anikha Greer and 2019 Games athlete Feeroozeeh Saghafi.

Africa – CrossFit Semifinals Predictions

Although the athletes competing out of Africa are not as famous as the ones from North America East, the Rebel Renegades Games will be one of the toughest weekends for competitors as coming out 2^nd means you won’t make it to the Games.

• Top man will be invited to the Games
• Top woman will be invited to the Games

So they must put everything on the line and hope the other contestants slip up as any mistake can put you on a flight to Madison or not.

Source: Instagram

Men’s Division

The men’s division will put head-to-head two athletes expected to finish on the podium, possibly fighting for the only Games invitation available Jason Smith and Kealan Henry.

While Smith went to the Games in 2017, 2019 and 2021, but in 2022 Henry took over the crown in Fittest in Cape Town and punched his first ticket to the CrossFit Games.

One dark horse people should keep an eye out for is Darren Zurnamer. He finished 3^rd in the 2022 Semifinals and 2^nd this year, right after Henry.

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Women’s Division

Usually, the battle for the crown in the women’s division is between Michelle Merand and Michelle Basnett. This time, Merand decided to try the Games in a team, leaving the path easier for Michelle Basnett.

The dark horse in this competition is Christina Livaditakis. The 26-year-old from Zimbabwe finished 2^nd at the Semifinals last year and came out on top during Quarterfinals this time around.

Who are you excited to see this year?

Here is everything you need to know about the first weekend of CrossFit Semifinals and how to watch them.

2023 CrossFit Semifinals – How to Watch

North America East

• When – May 18-21
• Where – Orlando, Florida (USA)

How to Watch

The events will be televised for free on CrossFit’s Youtube channel, on their homepage and through the app.

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Who is Competing?

Now that CrossFit has cut down from 4 to 2 in the number of Semifinals in North America, the amount of elite CrossFit athletes competing is one more reason to keep an eye out for this event.

Some of the best of the best will be side-by-side in Orlando this Thursday. Here are some of the names you will be seeing on the competition floor:

• Women – Brooke Wells, Emma Cary, Emma Lawson, Danielle Brandon, Amanda Barnhart.
• Men – Jeffrey Adler, Dallin Pepper, Noah Ohlsen, Roman Khrennikov, Saxon Panchik, Samuel Cournoyer.

Both winners of this year’s CrossFit Open will be on the floor: Mal O’Brien and Jeff Adler.

UPDATE: Mal O’Brien announced on Tuesday evening that she won’t be competing at Semifinals.

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Rebel Renegade Games – Africa

The African CrossFit Semifinal this year is being hosted by the Rebel Renegade Games. The competition, however, starts a day after the one from North America East.

• When – May 19-21
• Where – Johannesburg, South Africa

How to Watch

The livestream will be available at Rebel Renegade Games YouTube channel.

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Who is Competing

Here are all the participants expected to show up in South Africa this weekend to fight for an invitation to the CrossFit Games (scroll to the second photo).

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How Many Athletes Will Receive an Invitation After the Semifinals?

BOXROX went into depth about how many invitations each Semifinal will have available for its competitors.

In short, these are the cutlines for this weekend:

• North America East – 11 (women) and 12 (men)
• Africa – 1 (woman) and 1 (man)

Are you excited for this weekend’s turn of events?

Imagine a competition that will test your strength, endurance, athleticism, and mental toughness that allows you to win money depending on how well you do. No, we are not talking about the CrossFit Games, but rather the Hybrid Conditioning, or Hybricon Games.

Hosted by Battle Bunker and created by Austen Alexander, what first started as an obstacle course racing in 2020 is now a test of physical capabilities in which everyone can join for cash prizes.

“Since we wanted to make it open to anyone this year, we branched out and programmed workouts that could be done pretty much anywhere, with minimal equipment,” Alexander told BOXROX.

Source: The Battle Bunker

Alexander is a veteran and, although he created the events for the first competition of Battle Bunker, last year he partnered with an athlete who is famous in the CrossFit-style tournaments: Hunter McIntyre.

“Hunter is my right-hand man as the Race Director of Battle Bunker. We partnered in 2022 and he now handles all programming of the events and workouts.

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Hunter McIntyre is globally famous in the obstacle course racing community. He recently broke his own HYROX world record in Barcelona this week. Although he is not a CrossFit athlete, he was controversially invited as a wild card for the CrossFit Games in 2019. He accepted the challenge and was eliminated after the second workout after struggling on the handstand walks.

HybriCon Games from Battle Bunker – How Does It Work?

That’s the background of the Pipeline (the competition that encompasses all stages of the Hybricon Games), but what is it exactly and how much money can you get?

As explained earlier, the Hybricon Games is very similar to the CrossFit season. There is an open workout that everyone is encouraged to join called “Combine.” The top 21 men and women go to Pipeline Regionals. The best of the best will then meet up for the final phase of the competition: the Hybricon Games.

Combine

• April 2-8

The Combine is the first phase of the competition. It is an open workout consisting of Hybricon Physical Test. “The Combine workouts are a sprint, 3RM strength superset, and 30-20-10 dumbbell thruster/lateral burpee,” Alexander explained.

Athletes need to perform the movements and record them via phone or camera, and submit through the Combine Form along with scores, region, name and contact information.

It is free to compete and you can get a cash prize (more on that later) while getting tested and fitter.

Pipeline Regionals

• June 3, 10, 17

This is the second phase of the competition in which Battle Bunker will send out invitations to the top 21 men and women from each region which are: East Coast, West Coast, and International.

Source: The Battle Bunker

Hybricon Games

•  October 28-29
• In Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center, Chula Vista, California

The Hybricon Games is the last phase of the competition in which the winner will be crowned the World’s Toughest Athlete – 42 competitors will come from Regionals and 6 will come from “hero wild cards,” which are invitations sent by Battle Bunker to athletes who are an active firefighter, military, EMT, medical, teacher, LE.

A total of 48 athletes will be competing at the Hybricon Games.

On October 28^th athletes will be put through mental tests named “grit day,” while on the following day, the competitors will be put under one last day of physical tests titled “field day.”

After two days of testing, the top of the top earns the title of World’s Toughest Athlete.

Dates for the Hybricon Games

To recap, here are the days for the Pipeline competition from Battle Bunker:

• Combine – April 2-8
• Pipeline Regionals – June 3, 10, 17
• Hybricon Games – October 28-29

Source: The Battle Bunker

Cash Prizes

Although it is free to compete, athletes have a chance to earn cash prizes during the competition.

During the open workout of “Combine,” Battle Bunker will randomly select one submission to win a $1,000 cash prize just for entering the competition. During this phase, one male and one female athlete will be selected to win a year’s supply of PWR LIFT Protein Infused Water.

The Hybricon Games has a total cash prize available of $51,000. The money will be given to athletes from each division who finish on the podium:

1^st place – $20,000

2^nd place – $4,000

3^rd place – $1,000

An honour award of $1,000 is also announced during the Hybricon Games and it is reserved for one athlete who is doing good in their community and is an essential worker (such as a firefighter, military, EMT, medical, or teacher). Battle Bunker will select a leader in their community to win the $1,000 cash prize honour award.

Although the prize is announced during the Hybricon Games, any athlete who fits the criteria from the Combine, Pipeline Regionals or Hybricon Games is eligible to win it.

Source: The Battle Bunker

To learn more about the Pipeline competition, the Combine, Regionals and the Hybricon Games, check out Battle Bunker’s official website by clicking here.

HYROX is one of the world’s biggest functional fitness competitions. The tournament takes place in different cities across the globe and is exactly the same every single time, which makes it easier to compare who is the best overall.

The competition starts with a 1 km run, followed by a functional workout and this structure is repeated 8 times with a different movement for each functional round. From wall balls to the ski erg, each round will test a new facet of your fitness.

Source: HYROX

Related: Functional Fitness for Every Body – Why You Must Try HYROX

Mikaela Norman, the Future of HYROX?

Mikaela Norman is a CrossFit athlete who made it to the Games on two occasions – 2016 and 2022, both in team CrossFit Nordic.

The Swedish athlete, renowned for her endurance capability, is now making waves in the HYROX world. This year she competed for the first time and broke the world record. She finished the HYROX event at 1:00:45.

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Norman’s exciting first year could end with her taking the gold medal home. Here is the list of the 15 athletes competing in the women’s division on January 21^st.

There will also be 15 elite-level athletes competing in the men’s division. Unfortunately, the current world record holder Hunter McIntyre will not be participating. Portuguese athlete Tiago Lousa has set the fastest race this year completing it in 57:44 – McIntyre’s world record is set at 55:09.

Source: Sportgraph

Former world champion Tobias Lautwein makes his return to elite racing having missed last year’s World Championship race due to illness. He finished his qualifying race in Basel in 58:10.

After the European Championships, which will be hosted in Maastricht, Netherlands, on January 21^st, we will see the North American Championships on February 11^th in Chicago. The World Championships will be held in Manchester, U.K., on May 26^th.

The 2023 Wodapalooza took place on 12-15 January in Miami. Days 12 and 13 were events programmed exclusively for individual athletes. On Saturday and Sunday we saw the showdown of teams competing again one another.

2023 Wodapalooza Winners

Elite Women

After the first day of competition, Emily Rolfe looked strong to win in Miami. However, in event 6, the Canadian athlete suffered a level 1 calf tear and had to finish the workout earlier. She still competed in the next two events, though she quickly fell from podium position. And who took advantage of that?

Paige Powers. Remember that name. The 19-year-old American athlete classified for her first individual Games in 2022 and has now made a name for herself in Miami. Not only was she well rounded (only one event placed outside of the top 10), but she also finished with a bang winning events 5 and 6 and placing 3^rd at the very last one to claim the crown.

Dani Speegle was the only contender that could have taken over Powers place. After the swim event, she was one point behind the leader.

The last two events decided who finished on the podium. Speegle crushed through workout 8, with Cary finishing strong while Michalyshen lost her chance on the podium after finishing 10^th in the last event.

Check out the entire leaderboard here.

Elite Men

Ricky Garard and Roman Khrennikov might be the new CrossFit rivalry. Without the Fittest on Earth Justin Medeiros competing this weekend, it was up to the two of them to see who would come out on top.

Although at the Games last year Khrennikov edged out Garard on the podium, in Miami it was the Australian athlete who won overall.

A very close battle that was only decided in the last event. Khrennikov won events 5 and 6 with Garard in 2^nd on both of them, right on his heels. It was Dirty Isabel that put the crown on Garard’s head as he finished 6^th while Khrennikov was 9^th in the event.

Pat Vellner, the only athlete to win Wodapalooza, had to contend with 3^rd placement overall on Friday evening. Although consistent in many events – 5 events within the top 5 – events 4A and 5 made the point gap wider compared to Khrennikov and Garard.

You can check the full official leaderboard here.

Elite Team Female

When everyone said the team’s division this year at Wodapalooza was going to be interesting, nobody expected to have a technical tie after 7 events, but that is exactly what we got.

Team BPN had Laura Horvath, Jamie Simmonds and Gabriela Migala and everyone was expecting Kathrin Davidsdottir, Annie Thorisdottir and Mal O’Brien from The Dottirs ft. MOB to do a big showdown.

In the end, BPN finished on top due to winning two events in the competition while the Dottirs ft. MOB won just one event, which was exactly the last one giving the fans their money’s worth.

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Check out the full leaderboard here.

Elite Team Male

We previously wrote for people to keep an eye on Canadian PB&J. Heck, we even said that should be the name of the team before they announced it.

Pat Vellner, Brent Fikowski and Jeff Adler showed what Canadian strength looks like and dusted the opposition, kind of. They didn’t win a single event this weekend, but managed to stay 29 points ahead of Roman Khrennikov, Willy Georges and Jay Crouch from Team GOWOD.

The Boyz, with Chandler Smith, Travis Mayer and Noah Ohlsen, won last year the Wodapalooza but didn’t manage to do it again this time. That is how fierce the competition was this year.

Check out the full leaderboard here.

Malheiros and Sigmundsdottir Stand Out

Although they didn’t finish within the top 5 in the leaderboard, Wodapalooza was a memorable tournament for Brazilian Guilherme Malheiros and Icelandic powerhouse Sara Sigmundsdottir.

Malheiros broke the CrossFit competition record of Clean & Jerk in Miami. He lifted a jaw-dropping 395lbs (180 kg). The previous record was 387 set by Tola Morakinyo in 2017 at the Games; Jake Douglas also hit it in 2019.

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Sara Sigmundsdottir has told us about her epic comeback and this might be the beginning of it. The Icelandic powerhouse was once considered one of the best female athletes in the Sport, but has lost some of her momentum due to injuries that took her out, most recently in 2021 when she did ACL surgery.

In Miami, she managed to stay healthy and finished 6^th overall, three points behind Emma Tall. Her best placement in the events was 3^rd place on Back to the Future (event 2).

The team’s CrossFit competition at Wodapalooza is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated tournaments of the year. Two days ago BOXROX reported that Mal O’Brien, Katrin Davidsdottir and Annie Thorisdottir have teamed up and now we see not one, but two additional teams forming to take on Miami.

Sara Sigmundsdottir, Emily Rolfe and Katelyn van Zyl – Spacer’s Angels

Late afternoon yesterday, three female CrossFit Games athletes shared a video announcing they were teaming up for Wodapalooza this January: Sara Sigmundsdottir, Emily Rolfe and Katelyn van Zyl.

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Sara Sigmundsdottir is well-known within the CrossFit community. She is arguably one of the best female CrossFit athletes that have been in the Sport for a while, but hasn’t made it past 3^rd place at the Games.

For the past two years, Sigmundsdottir has struggled with injuries. Her last appearance at the Games was in 2020 when she finished 21^st. This year, she narrowly missed going to the Games and finished 12^th at the Last-Chance Qualifier. This could be the comeback she promised earlier.

Emily Rolfe is another elite-level individual CrossFit athlete who also had a tough time due to injury. She made it to the Games this year, but had to withdraw after the first event after suffering a severe blood clot in her left arm. However, she competed at Dubai Fitness Championship and came out 3^rd.

Katelyn van Zyl might be the lesser-known name in the team, but that is not to say she is less experienced than the two. The Australian athlete has been part of the CrossFit Open since 2013. She has been to the Games 3 times, in 2019, 2021 and 2022, but only the first time as an individual. She was part of the team CrossFit Urban Energy and finished 7^th at the Games last year. She was also the winner of Wodapalooza Online Challenge.

Willy Georges, Roman Khrennikov and Jay Crouch

Willy Georges, Roman Khrennikov and Jay Crouch have also been confirmed as a team for Wodapalooza this January. And all three athletes competed individually this year at the Games.

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Khrennikov took the Games by the horns and, in his first time competing in-person, he came out as the 2^nd Fittest Man on Earth. He is joined by Fittest man in France Willy Georges and Fittest man in Australia Jay Crouch.

More Elite Teams at 2023 Wodapalooza

The 2023 Wodapalooza is taking place in Miami on January 12-15. This tournament is regarded as the biggest one for CrossFit athletes that kicks off the new year. Although most of the time people are excited about the individual athletes competing, the team division will draw a lot of attention from lovers of the Sport.

This is not the first team comprised of elite-level CrossFit athletes that will compete at Wodapalooza in Miami. So far, these are the teams confirmed for the competition with notable CrossFit Games athletes:

For the women’s side:

Mal O’Brien, Katrin Davidsdottir and Annie Thorisdottir

Brooke Wells, Kristi Eramo O’Connell and Amanda Barnhart

Danielle Brandon, Andrea Nisler and Taylor Williamson

Kari Pearce, Arielle Loewen and Alex Gazan

Christine Kolenbrander, Alexis Raptis and Fee Saghafi

For the men’s side:

Rich Froning, Tyler Christophel and Samuel Cournoyer

Ben Smith, Alec Smith and Dane Smith

Brent Fikowski, Pat Vellner and Jeff Adler

Ricky Garard, Tim Paulson and Matt Dlugos

Cole Sager, Jayson Hopper and James Sprague

Noah Ohlsen, Travis Mayer and Chandler Smith

Are you excited about the 2023 Wodapalooza?

The team’s CrossFit competition at Wodapalooza is shaping up to be one for the ages. BOXROX recently reported that Brooke Wells, Kristi Eramo O’Connel and Amanda Barnhart joined forces to tackle Wodapalooza together, and now we have another incredible team of elite-level athletes teaming up.

O’Brien, Davidsdottir and Thorisdottir Together for 2023 Wodapalooza

The official Instagram page of Wodapalooza broke the news the past few hours saying “this is not a drill.”

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“With over 20 Games appearances combined, this team is no stranger to the podium and they’re bringing the competition to another level,” it reads.

Mal O’Brien has been on a stratospheric career in CrossFit. Last year she earned the “Rookie of the Year” after she finished 7th at the Games. This year, she came in 2^nd place and is likely going to fight for the top podium again.

Annie Thorisdottir and Katrin Davidsdottir are best friends inside and outside the competition floor. They both won the title of Fittest Woman on Earth back-to-back – Thorisdottir in 2011 and 2012, and Davidsdottir in 2015 and 2016.

Annie is more used to competing in a team as she created her own for the first time this year and finished 4^th at the Games.

More Elite Teams at 2023 Wodapalooza

The 2023 Wodapalooza is taking place in Miami on January 12-15. This tournament is regarded as the biggest one for CrossFit athletes that kicks off the new year. Although most of the time people are excited about the individual athletes competing, the team division will draw a lot of attention from lovers of the Sport.

This is not the first team comprised of elite-level CrossFit athletes that will compete at Wodapalooza in Miami. So far, these are the teams confirmed for the competition with notable CrossFit Games athletes:

For the women’s side:

Brooke Wells, Kristi Eramo O’Connell and Amanda Barnhart

Danielle Brandon, Andrea Nisler and Taylor Williamson

Kari Pearce, Arielle Loewen and Alex Gazan

Christine Kolenbrander, Alexis Raptis and Fee Saghafi

For the men’s side:

Rich Froning, Tyler Christophel and Samuel Cournoyer

Ben Smith, Alec Smith and Dane Smith

Brent Fikowski, Pat Vellner and Jeff Adler

Ricky Garard, Tim Paulson and Matt Dlugos

Cole Sager, Jayson Hopper and James Sprague

Noah Ohlsen, Travis Mayer and Chandler Smith

Are you excited about the 2023 Wodapalooza?

The 2022 WheelWOD is a one-of-a-kind CrossFit competition which highlights adaptive athletes. The tournament took place in Raleigh, North Carolina, on December 2-4.

A total of 12 different categories were on display. Check out the podium finishers for each category and, if you want, you can see the full leaderboard here.

2022 WheelWOD Games Winner

Seated Without Hip Function – Male

1. Jedidiah Snelson
2. Joshua Young
3. Brandon Mantz

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Seated Without Hip Function – Female

1. Andrea Wilson
2. Neslie I Bernard Ortiz
3. Shelby Estocado

Seated With Hip Function – Male

1. Tom Miazga
2. Michael Egan
3. Brett Palser

Seated With Hip Function – Female

1. Amalia Ortuño Lizano
2. Shana Coissard
3. De’Anna Thompson

Seated Quadriplegic – Male

1. Eric Baker
2. Ricky Bouley

Upper Impairment 1 Point of Contact – Male

1. Victor Hugo Assaf
2. Steven Walker
3. Johnny Hill

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Upper Impairment 1 Point of Contact – Female

1. Genny Tidwell

Upper Impairment 2 Points of Contact – Male

1. Josue Maldonado
2. Lloyd Burns

Upper Impairment 2 Points of Contact – Female

1. Anneka Allen
2. Meg McCreight

Lower Impairment 1 Point of Contact – Male

1. Derek Weida
2. Anthony Gutierrez
3. Ross Austen

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Lower Impairment 1 Point of Contact – Female

1. Amy Bream
2. Katie Weymouth
3. Morgan Ramos

Lower Impairment 2 Points of Contact – Male

1. Jeremy Gordon
2. John Jarret
3. Omar Iglesias

Lower Impairment 2 Points of Contact – Female

1. Sarah Rudder
2. Sara Arango
3. Amy Winters

Sensory – Male

1. Jonathan Lyens

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Sensory – Female

1. Erica Powell James
2. Raquel Olivier Campos
3. Kimberley Dekeyrel

Short Stature – Male

1. Mikey Witous
2. Sean Eberle

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Elite – Female

1. Amanda Street
2. Addison Dailey

Elite – Male

1. Daviel Ostolaza
2. Jonathan Maackerchar
3. Carter Bouchard

Neuromuscular Major – Female

1. Anna Stern
2. Esther Edington
3. Sydney Peterson

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Neuromuscular Major – Male

• Austin Roth
• Dustin McCallum
• Daniel Schmitt

Neuromuscular Minor – Female

• Jordan Ingalsbe
• Andrea Unwin
• Rebecca Shingledecker

Neuromuscular Minor – Male

1. Chris Schmulbach
2. Jeremy Easley
3. Bryan Nuno

2022 WheelWOD Games Livestream

Those were the 2022 WheelWOD Games winners, but if you want to see how the competition developed, you can check out the livestream of all days below.

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Read More: Fittest Blind Female on Earth Competes with Men and Finishes 2nd at WheelWOD Games

The DFC this year happened on December 2-4 and it was the first event from Dubai after sponsors announced they were parting ways with the brand CrossFit.

Here are the overall winners from 2022 Dubai Fitness Championship and a quick recap of the dramatic days of events for these elite-level athletes.

2022 Dubai Fitness Championship Winners

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Men

1. Fabian Beneito Selles — 625 points
2. Moritz Fiebig — 625 points 
3. Brent Fikowski — 620 points
4. Jonne Koski — 600 points
5. Alex Kotoulas — 580 points
6. Aniol Ekai — 520 points
7. Luka Đukić — 455 points
8. Briant Guillaume — 455 points
9. Javier Gonzalez — 445 points
10. Giorgos Karavis — 435 points
11. Reggie Fasa — 430 points
12. Lazar Đukić — 420 points
13. Victor Hoffer — 395 points
14. Luka Vunjak — 320 points
15. Michal Wesolowski — 310 points
16. Vladimir Sechin — 305 points
17. Damián Martínez Satorres — 300 points
18. Nikita Yundov — 240 points
19. Khan Porter — Withdrew
20. Simon Mäntylä — Withdrew

Women

1. Karin Frey — 705 points
2. Matilde Øyen Garnes — 585 points
3. Emily Rolfe — 585 points
4. Jamie Simmonds — 575 points
5. Oihana Moya Oliver — 550 points
6. Manon Angonese — 535 points
7. Claudia Gluck — 515 points
8. Hanna Karlsson — 500 points
9. Freya Moosbrugger — 470 points
10. Dana Paran — 445 points
11. Lena Richter — 405 points
12. Andrea Solberg — 370 points
13. Aoife Burke — 360 points
14. Ella Kanona Wunger — 335 pionts
15. Seher Kaya — 335 points
16. Aimee Cringle — 325 points 
17. Valentina Magalotti — 235 points
18. Maria Längfors — 215 points
19. Valentina Rangel — Withdrew
20. Tayla Howe — Withdrew

Check out the detailed leaderboard here.

Dubai Fitness Championship Recap

For the CrossFit lovers out there, Dubai brought unique events, elimination rounds and a lot of nail-biting finishes.

There were a total of 8 events divided into three days. The first day comprised of only one event, but it was a tough endurance one: to climb up the stairs of the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, with a weighted vest.

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Alex Kotoulas and Jammie Simmonds would head into day 2 with the first win on their backs. However, both of them would not be on the podium when winners were crowned.

On day 2 athletes performed a clean ladder on event 2 and, in the end, the winners of this strength test finished on top of the podium on Sunday afternoon. For the women’s division, Oihana Moya Oliver and Karin Frey went head-to-head in a showdown with the latter coming out as the winner. For the men’s side, Fabian Beneito and Reggie Fasa went to the tiebreak with the Spanish athlete finishing slightly ahead and taking his first win of the competition.

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Events 3 and 4 began to paint the picture of how uncertain the leaderboard would be for the men’s division. Brent Fikowski lead the pack followed closely by Mortiz Fiebig. Karin Frey won event 3 as well and finished 3^rd on the last event of the day, solidifying her position coming into Sunday, with Jamie Simmonds following her 45 points behind.

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The last day of the competition was not for the faint-hearted. While Karin Frey maintained her dominance on event 7 and finished 2^nd on the last event of the day, in the men’s division it came down to the last rep, literally.

Coming into the last event, Fikowski and Beneito were tied in points at the top of the leaderboard and it all came down to who would best who. In the event, Moritz Fiebig cruised the finish line first and embraced the crowd, but all eyes were on Fikowski and Beneito.

The last part of the workout consisted of double dumbbell overhead walking lunge. While Fikowski began the exercise ahead, Beneito was close behind. It seemed like Fikowski would pass ahead of Beneito, securing his overall win at the DFC, but the very last step into the finish line was a no rep for the Canadian athlete. Beneito, close behind, passed him over and finished ahead.

Watch the crucial moment of Fikowski’s no rep at the very last second and Beneito passing him and securing the title.

In the end, Fikowski went from 1^st to 3^rd on the leaderboard. Moritz and Fiebig finished with 625 points, but the Spanish athlete took the crown with the tiebreak as he won 3 events in total while Moritz won just one.

If you missed out on the action, you can watch the Livestream of days 2 and 3 of the 2022 Dubai Fitness Championship.

Read More: Pat Vellner, Brent Fikowski, and Jeff Adler Team Up for the 2023 Wodapalooza

The Dubai Fitness Championship is one of the biggest off-season CrossFit events for elite athletes. A total of 20 men and 20 women will be competing in Dubai this weekend. Last year, Laura Horvath and Roman Khrennikov won the tournament, but both are not returning this year.

Find out how to watch the 2022 Dubai Fitness Championship

How to Watch Dubai Fitness Championship

The Dubai Fitness Championship will take place from Friday (2) to Sunday (4).

The first day of the the 2022 Dubai Fitness Championship was not livestreamed as athletes had to run up the stairs of the tallest building in the world (Burj Khalifa) for time.

Here are the livestreams for days 2 and 3 from DFC’s YouTube channel.

Day 2 Livestream

Day 3 Livestream

Prize Purse

In October, organisers told BOXROX the reasoning for Dubai Fitness Championship parting ways with CrossFit and no longer being DCC.

Money will be awarded to every athlete competing in Dubai this weekend.

1. $50,000
2. $30,000
3. $20,000
4. $10,000
5. $5,000
6. $2,500
7. $500 (7th-20th place)

2022 DFC Roster

Men

Ricky Garard withdrew from competing in Dubai after the Rogue Invitational due to being too intense off-season for the Australian athlete.

1. Fabian Beneito Selles – Spain
2. Giorgos Karavis – Greece
3. Lazar Dukic – Serbia
4. Alex Kotoulas – Greece
5. Jonne Koski – Finland
6. Aniol Ekai – Spain
7. Vladimir Sechin – Russian Federation
8. Damian Martinez Satorres – Spain
9. Luka Dukic – Serbia
10. Samuel Cournoyer – Canada
11. Luka Vunjak – Serbia
12. Nikita Yundov – Belarus
13. Briant Guillaume – France
14. Javier Gonzalez – Spain
15. Victor Hoffer – France
16. Reggie Fasa – U.K.
17. Michal Wesolowski – Poland
18. Brent Fikowski – Canada
19. Simon Mantyla – Sweden
20. Khan Porter – Australia

Women

1. Claudia Gluck – France
2. Aoife Burke – Ireland
3. Jamie Simmonds – New Zealand
4. Oihana Moya Oliver – Spain
5. Seher Kaya – Norway
6. Matilde Oyen Garnes – Norway
7. Emily Rolfe – Canada
8. Manon Angonese – Belgium
9. Tayla Howe – U.K.
10. Aimee Cringle – U.K.
11. Freya Moosbrugger – Canada
12. Karin Frey – Slovakia
13. Andrea Solberg – Norway
14. Valentina Magalotti – Italy
15. Maria Langfors – Sweden
16. Ella Kanona Wunger – Sweden
17. Dana Paran – U.S.
18. Valentina Rangel – Colombia
19. Hanna Karlsson – Sweden
20. Lena Richter – Norway

You can check out the official leaderboard here.

Read More: Pat Vellner, Brent Fikowski, and Jeff Adler Team Up for the 2023 Wodapalooza

Tia-Clair Toomey shared a video on her Instagram stories explaining that she was sorry her team won’t be able to compete at the Down Under Championship this weekend. This is last minute as the competition begins November 18^th in Wollongong, a coastal city south of Sydney.

Source: Tia-Clair Toomey Instagram

“Hello everyone. Unfortunately, me and my team have to withdrawn from this weekend’s competition at Down Under Championships. This is obviously very devastating news and I am incredibly sorry,” Tia-Clair Toomey said on her Instagram stories.

“There was a lot of people that were counting on us to be coming and competing this weekend. I feel like I’m letting so many people down, including my team, including the people that are travelling to come and watch us compete, including my family who’s coming down to watch as well. This is something that I am really, really sorry about, especially to the event. However, we will be doing a lot of meet and greets. We will still be there in person meeting every single one of you. And I am really, really looking forward to being able to actually interact and be out to do more on a personal level with you all. So I can’t wait for the event.”

At the time of writing, Brooke Wells hasn’t written or shared anything regarding the news. Ellie Turner reshared Tia’s video on her Instagram stories with the caption “devastated, but super excited to still be around to meet you all.”

Tia-Clair Toomey Possibly Injured

Although the athletes have not explained further the reasoning for not competing, in Down Under Championship Instagram’s stories it was shared that Tia was “injured.”

Source: Down Under Championship Instagram

Earlier this year, Tia-Clair Toomey revealed that she almost pulled out of the CrossFit Games due to a back injury a couple of weeks prior to the event. As we know, she competed anyway and won her 6^th title of Fittest Woman on Earth.

Later, the question was whether Toomey would compete at the Rogue Invitational, one of the biggest off-season CrossFit events. BOXROX talked with Tia about it and she told us she wouldn’t be able to due to her injury and not wanting to rush back and put herself at risk of injury again.

And that is why she chose to compete in a team with Brooke Wells and Ellie Turner towards the end of the year – to have something to look forward to, but not put too much pressure on her.

Although not official, it all adds up that Tia’s injury could be the reasoning for why the team had to pull out last minute from the Down Under Championship.

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BOXROX previously detailed the differences between what it used to be the path athletes took to get to the CrossFit Games and how it is going to be from now on.

In a nutshell, CrossFit simply took away 10 guaranteed spots from North America, 5 from Europe and the two remaining from Last-Chance Qualifier and put them up for grabs.

With a worldwide ranking system that is yet to be detailed by CrossFit, it seems like shooting yourself in the foot as North America and Europe are clearly the biggest market for CrossFit and one that generally produces the fittest athletes at the end of the season.

In the best-case scenario, which frankly will not happen, North America and Europe will gain back their spots and move on to the CrossFit Games like it is 2022 – however, I am pretty sure Oceania will snatch a few spots for them.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc

In fact, I myself did a BOXROX article back in April talking about which Semifinal would have the fittest athletes. Although a simplified version of what it could be, that article’s sole purpose was to show that some Semifinals are more difficult than others – spoiler alert: the European Semifinals were the hardest for women.

And CrossFit Inc. seems to have similar concerns that some very fit and good candidates for the CrossFit Games were not making it through the Semifinals because the field was simply too strong.

While I applaud that concern, the system in which CrossFit decided to tackle this issue seems flawed once we look into it a bit further.

First of all, there is the issue of cutting qualifying spots from North America and Europe by half mentioned earlier. But also, CrossFit says it will take into consideration the past two seasons of athletes’ placement in the Open, Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Games to come up with the points for each competitor to see who are the fittest.

While that might sound good on paper, looking retroactively to rank athletes in the present day can be unfair – and I am not even going into the discussion that in the past two years, because of the new rules at the time, many elite athletes purposefully didn’t do their best at the Open and Quarterfinals, only competing for real on Semifinals.

That aside, what about athletes who missed an entire season because they were injured? Are you going to disregard that season and only count the one before that? Sam Kwant is a great example. He was 2nd in 2020, had to withdraw last year because of an injury, and this year finished 4th at the Games.

Also, how about athletes who are starting just now, or did great at the CrossFit Games this year but in the teen division? Two examples that come to mind straight away are Olivia Kerstetter and Emma Lawson.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc

Olivia Kerstetter is a force to be reckoned and she was asked if she was going to compete as an elite individual or if she would go on the teenager division this year – need I to remind you that she is only 16 and next year she can still compete as a teen and that only proves how strong this girl really is.

If she decides to compete with the big names at the CrossFit Games, how is she going to be ranked in this worldwide system if she has only been competing as a teenager? Is she less deserving, or lower ranked, compared to someone who has been to the CrossFit Games only once two years ago as an elite individual?

Emma Lawson is another athlete that would be problematic to put in a box and give her points. In a similar fashion to Kerstetter, she was able to compete in the teen division but chose not to and finished 6^th Fittest Woman on Earth. The year before, she won in the 16-17 year division.

Clearly, Lawson is an athlete who is making waves in the Sport, but how can someone rank her compared to other athletes worldwide?

Is There a Better Solution?

It seems like CrossFit’s main goal is to even the playing field by letting the fittest people on the planet compete equally at the expense of spots that were guaranteed to European and North American athletes.

In my view, the biggest flaw is to rank athletes now based on their past two years in the Sport. This system can be put into place two years from now and not simply forced down from one moment to the other.

I believe there are two paths, two options, to achieve what CrossFit wants which is to find out the fittest athletes on the planet.

1. Increase Games Spots

I know, I know, this is almost impossible to happen. It is hard enough to put 40 athletes on the field competing so increasing the number of competitors could become a logistical nightmare. And you are right about that, but only if we think of the CrossFit Games the way it is stipulated now.

What if the CrossFit Games becomes a full week of competition instead of just 3 or 4 days? And we don’t need to have all athletes competing in the same event at the same time. Event 1 could be half of the athletes on a Monday and the other half on a Tuesday.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Games

By increasing the number of athletes competing, CrossFit would be guaranteeing some household names at the Games while giving a chance to newcomers from other parts of the world.

2. Change The Whole System

Although it might sound dramatic, it is fairly doable to change the entire system. Not the new worldwide ranking system CrossFit is unveiling now, but rather how the events for the Open, Quarterfinals and Semifinals are held.

Let me explain: CrossFit wants to find out the fittest people on the planet, correct? How about we make every single athlete do exactly the same workout throughout the world? And every time we cut a few people from the leaderboard in an elimination-style competition.

For example:

• Open – top 20% athletes go to the next phase
• Quarterfinals – top 20% of athletes go to the next phase
• Semifinals – top 40 athletes go to the CrossFit Games

In this example, it would not matter the nationality or region from which an athlete is competing. If CrossFit really wants to find the fittest athlete in the world, give them the same workout and whoever is better/faster advances to the next stage.

In the end we would have, without a doubt, the 40 best suited competitors fighting for the title of Fittest on Earth. Sure, that could possibly mean that 90% of those athletes are from North America and Europe, but at least you would know you are getting the best of the best.

It sure sounds a lot like meritocracy, but when it comes to sports, don’t you want to see the best competing? The biggest problem with this approach is the possibility of not having representatives from around the globe. But that is why I work at BOXROX and not at CrossFit.com, that is their problem to solve, not mine.

Read More: 10 Highlights, Surprises and Shocks of All 2022 CrossFit Semifinals

The announcement from CrossFit HQ was made in yesterday’s edition of The Hopper. According to the organisation, “highly competitive regions will be awarded more qualifying spots for the Games based on the rankings of the qualifying athletes after Quarterfinals.

We do not know as of yet the entire explanation of how this new worldwide ranking system works – CrossFit promised to release full details “before the start of the Open” which is February 16. This is what we do know so far.

CrossFit New Worldwide Ranking

The CrossFit season in the past two years was fairly straightforward. Athletes compete at the Open, top athletes move to the Quarterfinals, then Semifinals, and the top contenders would move on to the Games. We used to have the Last-Chance Qualifier as well, but that has been dropped.

The path continues the same, however, the number of athletes who will be qualifying from a particular Semifinal is no longer set in stone.

How it used to be

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Qualifying spots from Semifinals – how it used to be:

In 2021 and 2022 the last four remaining spots for individual athletes (2 men and 2 women) were decided at the Last-Chance Qualifier, totalling 40 athletes in each category.

How it will be

Now with the drastic changes from CrossFit for the 2023 season and beyond the numbers will look much different. For starters, there will only be 2 Semifinals in North America and 1 in Europe.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc

Qualifying spots from Semifinals – how it will be:

This leaves 17 qualifying spots up for grabs which will be determined by the new worldwide ranking created by CrossFit HQ.

The minimum number of athletes from North America and Europe could be cut by half – in 2021 and 2021 we saw 20 from North America and 10 competitors from Europe, now it could be only 10 and 5, respectively.

This is not set in stone, however. As mentioned earlier, the strength-of-field calculation will be put in place for this new worldwide ranking system from CrossFit Inc. to determine how many athletes from which region will go through to the 2023 CrossFit Games.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

According to CrossFit:

• More competitive regions will be given additional qualifying spots.
• Less competitive regions will retain their minimum number of qualifying spots.
• Men’s and women’s divisions at each Semifinal may be allocated a different number of qualifying spots.
• The final number of qualifying spots to the Games for each Semifinal will be calculated after the conclusion of Quarterfinals.

This new system is designed to give more opportunities to regions considered tougher than others. For example, BOXROX did a ranking of which Semifinal had the fittest athletes after the conclusion of Quarterfinals.

Utilising a power ranking system, taking into consideration solely the Quarterfinal worldwide placement, we figured that some Semifinals were “tougher” than others. This year, we concluded that for men, the hardest playing field was in North America, namely the Syndicate Crown and MACC, while for women both European Semifinals were the toughest. Read more about it here.

It turns out CrossFit will be doing something similar to that effect to give more qualifying spots for other regions instead of a set number to North America and Europe.

According to the announcement yesterday, athletes will earn points based on their performance during the CrossFit season in the past two years. It will be taken into consideration an athlete’s placement a the Open, Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Games to calculate his or her ranking. “Placing higher in these stages and advancing further in the season will earn them more points,” the statement reads.

Read More: Dates for the 2023 CrossFit Season Announced

A total of 20 men and 20 women will be competing on December 2-4, 2022 at this year’s Dubai Fitness Championship. Last year, Laura Horvath and Roman Khrennikov won the tournament, but both are not returning this year.

In October, organisers told BOXROX the reasoning for Dubai Fitness Championship parting ways with CrossFit and no longer being DCC.

Ricky Garard Withdraws from Dubai Fitness Championship

Ricky Garard, 3^rd Fittest Man on Earth, broke the news that he will no longer compete in Dubai this year. On an Instagram post, he simply said he “pulled out of @dxbfitnesschamp to look after the body” and that the 2023 season is his focus.

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Later, Garard’s coach Justin Cotler explained further why the Australian athlete was withdrawing from one of the biggest off-season competitions in the Sport.

“Ricky competing at Rogue, Down Under Championship, Dubai, and WZA all in a 3 month period is simply too much. He wanted to do it, but in the end we decided we want to set him up for a successful season and not run him into the ground.”

Nikita Yundov Filled In “Last Minute”

Nikita Yundov has been called to take Garard’s place at the Dubai Fitness Championship. The athlete from Belarus placed 14^th at the 2022 Lowlands Throwdown Semifinal and has been to the CrossFit Games once, in 2019, where he finished 101^st.

“I’m going to compete in Dubai,” he wrote on his Instagram stories yesterday. “Although it was last minute, I am not going to miss it.”

*freely translated using Google.

Source: Nikita Yundov's Instagram

Read More: 2022 Dubai Fitness Championship Roster

The prize purse was evaluated at a minimum of $1.25 million. Minimum because the prize is influenced by bitcoin and ticket sales which contribute to the fund.

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In the end, the total prize purse was $1,272,490.

Every single athlete who competed this past weekend took a percentage of the overall fund home. The amount depended on their overall placement. So how much money did athletes win this year at the Rogue Invitational? Check it out below on the table.

How Much Money Did Athletes Win at the Rogue Invitational?

Men

1. Justin Medeiros – $218,868
2. Chandler Smith – $76,349
3. Jeffrey Adler – $40,720
4. Patrick Vellner – $30,540
5. Roman Khrennikov – $22,905
6. Bjorgvin Gudmundsson – $20,360
7. Jayson Hopper – $17,815
8. Samuel Kwant – $15,270
9. Noah Ohlsen – $10,180
10. Ricky Garard – $5,090
11. Jonne Koski – $5,090
12. Nick Mathew – $5,090
13. Cole Sager – $5,090
14. Jorge Fernandez – $5,090
15. Henrik Haapalainen – $5,090
16. Saxon Panchik – $5,090
17. Scott Tetlow – $5,090
18. Tim Paulson – $5,090
19. Jack Farlow – $5,090
20. Lazar Djukic – $5,090

Women

1. Laura Horvath – $218,868
2. Annie Thorisdottir – $76,349
3. Emma Lawson – $40,720
4. Ellie Turner – $30,540
5. Gabriela Migala – $22,905
6. Amanda Barnhart – $20,360
7. Kara Saunders – $17,815
8. Alexis Raptis – $15,270
9. Danielle Brandon – $10,180
10. Arielle Loewen – $5,090
11. Manon Angonese – $5,090
12. Dani Speegle – $5,090
13. Emma McQuaid – $5,090
14. Matilde Garnes – $5,090
15. Carolyne Prevost – $5,090
16. Olivia Kerstetter – $5,090
17. Jacqueline Dahlstrøm – $5,090
18. Bailey Rogers – $5,090
19. Anikha Greer – $5,090
20. Andrea Solberg – $5,090

The amount of money each athlete earned this past weekend at the 2022 Rogue Invitational was smaller than last year’s. That is, partially, because this year Rogue Fitness removed payouts for athletes finishing 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd at any given event.

The winners this year earned $37,512 less than the winners from 2021.

Strongman

1. Oleksii Novikov – $114,125
2. Trey Mitchell – $57,062
3. Mitchell Hooper – $34,237
4. Martins Licis – 11,412
5. Pavlo Nkonechnyy – $9,130
6. Bobby Thompson – $7,898
7. Maxime Boudreault – $6,847
8. Rob Kearney – $5,706
9. Eythor Melsted – $4,565
10. Kevin Faires – $3,424

Read More: 2022 Rogue Invitational Winners, 3 World Records Broken

This year’s Rogue Invitational had a surprise event a day earlier than previously reported. On Thursday the competition kicked off with Texas Trail with Danielle Brandon and Jayson Hopper topping the leaderboard.

What followed was three days of events with twists and turns for both men’s and women’s leaderboard. If you missed out on the action, find out how to watch all three days of televised events here.

2022 Rogue Invitational Winners

Men

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1. Justin Medeiros
2. Chandler Smith
3. Jeffrey Adler
4. Patrick Vellner
5. Roman Khrennikov
6. Bjorgvin Gudmundsson
7. Jayson Hopper
8. Samuel Kwant
9. Noah Ohlsen
10. Ricky Garard
11. Jonne Koski
12. Nick Mathew
13. Cole Sager
14. Jorge Fernandez
15. Henrik Haapalainen
16. Saxon Panchik
17. Scott Tetlow
18. Tim Paulson
19. Jack Farlow
20. Lazar Djukic

Justin Medeiros maintained his reign in Texas and was crowned the champion back-to-back. The mullet magic continues as he won the Fittest on Earth twice in a row and the Rogue Invitational as well. This year, following his well-rounded performance from before, he won two events and finished 15 points ahead the second place.

This was Chandler Smith’s comeback story. After failing to qualify for the 2022 CrossFit Games, the CrossFit athlete not only surpassed expectations, but he turned on the turbo on Saturday finishing many events with top-three placement – a highlight was the “Texas Oak” overhead jerk event.

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Canadian athlete Jeffrey Adler got the 3^rd placement at the 2022 Rogue Invitational after some incredible head-to-head battles with fellow CrossFitters like event 1 and event 4. Halfway through the competition, it seemed he would not make it to the podium after finishing events in 12^th, 11^th (twice) and 15^th. However, it was the last event, his only win, that catapulted him ahead of Pat Vellner to the podium.

Women

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1. Laura Horvath
2. Annie Thorisdottir
3. Emma Lawson
4. Ellie Turner
5. Gabriela Migala
6. Amanda Barnhart
7. Kara Saunders
8. Alexis Raptis
9. Danielle Brandon
10. Arielle Loewen
11. Manon Angonese
12. Dani Speegle
13. Emma McQuaid
14. Matilde Garnes
15. Carolyne Prevost
16. Olivia Kerstetter
17. Jacqueline Dahlstrøm
18. Bailey Rogers
19. Anikha Greer
20. Andrea Solberg

Laura Horvath smoked the competition. Without Tia-Clair Toomey competing this year as she is healing from a back injury, Horvath was the favourite to top the podium and she delivered.

She came out on top in events 3, 4, 5, and 6, and finished events 7 and 10 within the top three. At the end of the weekend, she amassed a 55-point lead over Thorisdottir.

This was Annie Thorisdottir’s first time competing as an individual in 2022. The last time she did that was exactly at the 2021 Rogue Invitational where she finished 2^nd. She explained she is not sure yet if she will return to competing individually next year or if she will continue her path down the team’s division.

Third place finished with a tie between Ellie Turner and Emma Lawson with the latter taking her place on the podium at the end of the weekend. The last event saw Turner finishing 4^th with Lawson finishing 13^th. However, Lawson’s 2 event wins got her through at the tiebreak.

You can check out the official leaderboard here.

Strongman

1. Oleksii Novikov
2. Trey Mitchell
3. Mitchell Hooper
4. Martins Licis
5. Pavlo Nkonechnyy
6. Bobby Thompson
7. Maxime Boudreault
8. Rob Kearney
9. Eythor Melsted
10. Kevin Faires

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This year we saw an almost completely new roster of Strongman competitors. Of all 10 athletes, only 3 competed again.

Last year’s champion Martins Licis finished far from the podium with 6 points behind 3^rd place Mitchell Hooper. The top two spots were a true head-to-head battle, with Oleksii Novikov always managing to edge out Trey Mitchell.

Record Breakers

As we reported by BOXROX, Hafthor Bjornsson was looking to make his comeback epic at the 2022 Rogue Invitational this past weekend. He attempted and succeeded at breaking his own weight over bar world record.

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Two more world records were broken this weekend at the 2022 Rogue Invitational.

Mitchell Hooper broke the record for Dinnie Stone hold. The stones weight 732 pounds (325.3 kilos) and he held it for 39.85 seconds – the previous record was 37.50 seconds made by Kevin Faires at the exact same event minutes earlier.

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Also during the weekend, Kevin Faires who saw his world record being broken in front of his eyes made history by breaking another one: the Thor’s Hammer deadlift. He lifted a hammer weighing 325 pounds (147.3 kilos).

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The previous world record was held by Martin Licis set at the Rogue Invitational last year.

As reported earlier by BOXROX, Rogue Invitational kicked off with a surprise event a day earlier than previously announced. Athletes were only told to bring a pair of joggers or trail run shoes, but details of the event were revealed moments before it started.

The workout was titled Texas Trail:

For time:

• 4.2 mile run
• 1.2 mile with ruck (30/20 lbs)
• 1 mile run
• 3 sandbags up and over (100/70 lbs)
• 2 mile run

Danielle Brandon and Jayson Hopper Win First Event at 2022 Rogue Invitational

4^th Fittest Woman on Earth Danielle Brandon and 7^th Fittest Man on Earth Jayson Hopper began their Rogue Invitational competition this year on top of the leaderboard.

Individual Women:

1. Danielle Brandon — 34:11.03
2. Bailey Rogers — 34:47.91
3. Gabriela Migała — 35:02.50
4. Matilde Garnes — 35:43.94
5. Emma Lawson — 35:53.39
6. Jacqueline Dahlstrøm — 35:59.95
7. Annie Thorisdottir — 36:02.20
8. Emma McQuaid — 36:34.02
9. Laura Horvath — 36:40.02
10. Andrea Solberg — 36:51.43
11. Arielle Loewen — 36:51.43
12. Ellie Turner — 37:44.29
13. Alexis Raptis — 38:02.31
14. Amanda Barnhart — 38:22.10
15. Manon Angonese — 38:22.10
16. Kara Saunders — 38:57.69
17. Carolyn Prevost — 40:11.83
18. Anikha Greer — 44:19.24
19. Dani Speegle — 44:27.06
20. Olivia Kerstetter — 46:28.21

Source: Photo courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Individual Men:

1. Jayson Hopper — 31:27.06
2. Jeffrey Adler — 31:40.83
3. Ricky Garard — 32:09.57
4. Roman Khrennikov — 32:09.57
5. Justin Medeiros — 32:38.29
6. Chandler Smith — 32:55.06
7. Björgvin Guðmundsson — 33:04.29
8. Saxon Panchik — 33:21.44
9. Noah Ohlsen — 33:38.21
10. Patrick Vellner —33:42.66
11. Cole Sager — 33:43.90
12. Scott Tetlow — 33:51.34
13. Jorge Fernandez — 35:23.41
14. Nick Mathew — 35:37.43
15. Henrik Haapalainen — 35:56.58
16. Samuel Kwant — 36:04.51
17. Tim Paulson — 37:15.83
18. Jonne Koski — 39:37.60
19. Jack Farlow — 40:29.85
20. Lazar Đukić — 50:42.68

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This Friday every athlete in the 2022 Rogue Invitational will compete. Beginning at 2:00 pm local time, Strongman contestants will participate in the “Tower of Power”, deadlift for reps where they will have 60 seconds for a maximum number of deadlifts possible.

Followed by that will be the 2^nd event for CrossFit individual athletes named “Ski Bar,” a triplet of bar muscle-up, calories on a ski erg and GHD sit-ups.

You can find out more about it in the link below:

Rogue Invitational LIVESTREAM: How to Watch, Full Roster, Workouts, Prize Purse

Overview, Eligibility Criteria Changes for Adaptive Divisions

The 2023 CrossFit season for adaptive athletes will be quite different from previous years. According to the organisation, a new Adaptive Athlete Policy will be outlined in the Rulebook when registration for the Open begins on November 15^th.

For next year, all eligible impairments have been updated. Now there will be a measurable minimum impairment criteria and verification standards to ensure athletes with similar abilities are grouped into appropriate divisions.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Adaptive athletes are required to submit an Adaptive Competition Eligibility Form (ACEF) along with “video or photo evidence of their impairment.” CrossFit outlines that a diagnosis is not sufficient to qualify for competition, but rather they must meet the impairment criteria noted above. The only exception where a diagnosis is sufficient is for athletes with Down syndrome applying for the intellectual division.

The impairments must also be present consistently. Athletes will be evaluated during the classification assessment and throughout the athlete’s participation in the season. “Impairments that are not present consistently through all stages of classification and competition are not eligible.” As part of the observation process for impairments, all athletes doing the RX’d Open are required to submit videos to confirm the data presented via the ACEF.

The eligibility classification begins with the submission of the ACEF which can be done before or during the registration process for the 2023 CrossFit Open. Classification will conclude after the close of the Open. CrossFit will record an athlete’s classification and provide a published list so athletes can follow the status of their competitors and for CrossFit-licensed events to utilise the same eligibility system for their competitions.

According to CrossFit, this means that some athletes who were eligible in 2021 and 2022 might not be eligible for an adaptive division in 2023.

The same 8 adaptive divisions will still be present in 2023, but Neuromuscular changed its name to Multi Extremity.

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Related: All 15 Changes for the 2023 CrossFit Season Structure

The Open

All athletes will be able to perform the workouts RX’d or scaled, however, CrossFit will not provide specific scaled versions of the adaptive division workouts. If an athlete performs a scaled version of a workout, there is no need to submit a modification request, but that athlete will not be competing for the title of Fittest on Earth in the division.

Still, athletes performing RX’d workouts may request movement modifications if the athlete’s impairment causes “clear and distinguishable limitations” that do not allow for proper range of motion or movement standards.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

New this year is the removal of the Semifinals. In 2022, the top 20 athletes from each division would go through a second stage of competition before being crowned the fittest. That has been scrapped now.

The top athletes from Multi Extremity, Lower Extremity and Upper Extremity divisions will qualify for the 2023 CrossFit Games out of the Open. The remaining five divisions will crown their fittest based on the results of the Open.

• Vision – top 3 crowned the Fittest after the Open
• Intellectual – top 3 crowned the Fittest after the Open
• Seated with Hip Function – top 3 crowned the Fittest after the Open
• Seated without Hip Function – top 3 crowned the Fittest after the Open
• Short Stature – top 3 crowned the Fittest after the Open
• Lower Extremity – top 5 athletes go to the CrossFit Games
• Upper Extremity – top 5 athletes go to the CrossFit Games
• Multi Extremity – top 5 athletes go to the CrossFit Games

Similar to 2022, athletes crowned fittest in their division at the end of the Open will be invited to a podium ceremony at the 2023 CrossFit Games in Madison, Wisconsin.

For 2024

CrossFit HQ has made clear that in 2024 it wants all adaptive divisions to compete at the CrossFit Games Finals. The only criterion is that divisions have “enough participation to allow for a competitive field,” although those conditions have not been clarified.

Read More: Official Dates for the 2023 CrossFit Season

2022 Rogue Invitational is the fourth time Rogue Fitness has created a competition for CrossFit and Strongman athletes to battle in a head-to-head tournament. Initially announced to begin this Friday, Rogue has actually surprised many by inviting athletes to pack a pair of trail running shoes for a surprise event on Thursday.

2022 Rogue Invitational

When: October 27-30, 2022

Where: Dell Diamon Stadium, in Round Rock, Texas, United States.

Source: Photos courtesy of Rogue

2022 Rogue Invitational Livestream: How to Watch

At the time of writing, only events on Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be broadcasted by Rogue Fitness. The links are below.

Day 1 – Friday

Day 2 – Saturday

Day 3 – Sunday

2022 Rogue Invitational Roster

Male

1. Saxon Panchik
2. Nick Mathew
3. Justin Medeiros
4. Roman Khrennikov
5. Ricky Garard
6. Sam Kwant
7. Jeffrey Adler
8. Pat Vellner
9. Jayson Hopper
10. Lazar Dukic
11. Bjorgvin Karl Gudmundsson
12. Henrik Haapalainen
13. Jonne Koski
14. Cole Sager
15. Chandler Smith
16. Jack Farlow
17. Noah Ohlsen
18. Scott Tetlow
19. Tim Paulson
20. Jorge Fernandez

Female

1. Laura Horvath
2. Danielle Brandon
3. Emma Lawson
4. Kara Saunders
5. Gabriela Migala
6. Alexis Raptis
7. Annie Thorisdottir
8. Arielle Loewen
9. Emma McQuaid
10. Amanda Barnhart
11. Jacqueline Dahlstrom
12. Carolyn Prevost
13. Matilde Garnes
14. Andrea Solberg
15. Anikha Greer
16. Bailey Rogers
17. Dani Speegle
18. Manon Angonese
19. Olivia Kerstetter
20. Ellie Turner

Legends Male

1. Dan Bailey
2. Jason Khalipa
3. Josh Bridges
4. Josh Everett
5. Matt Chan
6. Rich Froning
7. Tommy Hackenbruck
8. Mikko Salo
9. Chris Spealler

Legends Female

1. Annie Sakamoto
2. Kris Clever
3. Margaux Alvarez
4. Tanya Wagner
5. Stacie Tovar
6. Kari Pearce
7. Rebecca Voigt Miller
8. Sam Briggs

Strongman

1. Martins Licis – current champion
2. Oleksii Novikov – 3rd place in 2021
3. Rob Kearney – 6th place in 2021
4. Maxime Boudreault
5. Trey Mitchell
6. Bobby Thompson
7. Mitchell Hooper
8. Evan Singleton
9. Pavlo Nakochenyy
10. Kevin Faires

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2022 Rogue Invitational Workouts

Event One – Texas Trail

For time:

• 4.2 mile run
• 1.2 mile with ruck (30/20 lbs)
• 1 mile run
• 3 sandbags up and over (100/70 lbs)
• 2 mile run

Event 1 will happen on Thursday and, likely, won’t be televised on the 2022 Rogue Invitational livestream.

Event Two — Ski Bar

For time:

• 20 Bar Muscle-Ups
• Ski Erg — Men: 40 calories | Women: 32 calories
• 80 GHD Sit-Ups
• Ski Erg — Men: 40 calories | Women: 32 calories
• 20 Bar Muscle-Ups

Event Three — Back Attack

Five-four-three-two-one reps of:

• Back Squat (from rack) — Men: 405 pounds | Women: 275 pounds

25-20-15-10-Five reps of:

• Box Jump-overs — Men: 24-inch box | Women: 20-inch box

Event Four — DT With a Spin

Five rounds for time of:

• Echo Bike — 15 calories
• 12 Deadlifts — Men: 155 pounds | Women: 105 pounds
• Nine Hang Power Cleans — Men: 155 pounds | Women: 105 pounds
• Six Push Jerks — Men: 155 pounds | Women: 105 pounds

Event Five — The Turtle

• Axle Bar Lunge — Men: 155 pounds | Women: 105 pounds
• Monkey Bar Traverse
• Hill Run Bag Pull — Men: 155 pounds | Women: 105 pounds
• Monkey Bar Traverse
• Axle Bar Lunge — Men: 155 pounds | Women: 105 pounds

Event Six

TBD

Event Seven — Texas Oak

• One-Rep Max Log Lift

Event Eight — Snatch and Press

Three rounds for time of:

• 20 Dumbbell Snatches — Men: 100 pounds | Women: 70 pounds
• Nine Parallette Handstand Push-Ups — Men: four-inch deficit | Women: two-inch deficit

Event Nine — The Goblet

Seven rounds for time of:

• Seven Muscle-Ups
• Hill Sprint
• 11 Goblet Squats — Men: 88 pounds | Women: 62 pounds

Event 10

TBD

2022 Rogue Invitational Prize Purse

How much money will athletes win after the 2022 Rogue Invitational?

The minimum prize purse stands at $1.25 million. The prize can go up, depending on “cash, bitcoin, and ticket sales.”

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Are you excited about the 2022 Rogue Invitational?

2022 Rogue Invitational was initially scheduled to happen on October 28-30. However, reports began circulating that a surprise 1^st scored event is taking place a day earlier than initially assumed.

A screenshot of an e-mail sent by Rogue Invitational to athletes was shared by Barbend in which it warned about the news.

“Athletes, please plan for your visit briefing to take place on Wednesday at 4:45 pm in the Home Run Dugout at Dell Diamond,” the e-mail starts. “Thursday will be a competition day which includes the first scored event. Details of this event will be briefed during the Wednesday afternoon,” it continues.

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According to rumours, the athletes received the e-mail almost a month ago – as early as September 23^rd. Morning Chalk Up also reported that athletes were instructed to “pack joggers and or trail shoes.”

So, apparently, the new days for the 2022 Rogue Invitational are October 27-30.

2022 Rogue Invitational Roster

Official Rogue Invitational Strongman Roster Revealed with 7 New Athletes

Guilherme Malheiros was programmed to compete at the Rogue Invitational this year, but unexpectedly his name does not appear any longer in the list. Instead, Henrik Haapalainen is going to Austin to compete among the fittest of the fittest in the Sport.

As of the time of writing, Malheiros has not clarified why he is no longer competing at Rogue. In a Q&A on his Instagram stories, Malheiros said he is staying in Brazil “until December.”

The organisation itself also has not provided further explanation for the swap in the 2022 Rogue Invitational roster.

Henrik Haapalainen is this year’s 24^th Fittest Man on Earth. He posted a photo on his Instagram saying he placed 6^th in the qualifiers round of the Rogue Invitational and “got a spot to compete there.” He also did not mention Malheiros or any further reasoning.

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2022 Rogue Invitational Roster

We now have reason to believe the 2022 Rogue Invitational roster is finished. Check out who is competing in Austin, Texas, on October 28-30.

Male

1. Saxon Panchik
2. Nick Mathew
3. Justin Medeiros
4. Roman Khrennikov
5. Ricky Garard
6. Sam Kwant
7. Jeffrey Adler
8. Pat Vellner
9. Jayson Hopper
10. Lazar Dukic
11. Bjorgvin Karl Gudmundsson
12. Henrik Haapalainen
13. Jonne Koski
14. Cole Sager
15. Chandler Smith
16. Jack Farlow
17. Noah Ohlsen
18. Scott Tetlow
19. Tim Paulson
20. Jorge Fernandez

Female

1. Laura Horvath
2. Danielle Brandon
3. Emma Lawson
4. Kara Saunders
5. Gabriela Migala
6. Alexis Raptis
7. Annie Thorisdottir
8. Arielle Loewen
9. Emma McQuaid
10. Amanda Barnhart
11. Jacqueline Dahlstrom
12. Carolyn Prevost
13. Matilde Garnes
14. Andrea Solberg
15. Anikha Greer
16. Bailey Rogers
17. Dani Speegle
18. Manon Angonese
19. Olivia Kerstetter
20. Ellie Turner

Legends Male

1. Dan Bailey
2. Jason Khalipa
3. Josh Bridges
4. Josh Everett
5. Matt Chan
6. Rich Froning
7. Tommy Hackenbruck
8. Mikko Salo
9. Chris Spealler

Legends Female

1. Annie Sakamoto
2. Kris Clever
3. Margaux Alvarez
4. Tanya Wagner
5. Stacie Tovar
6. Kari Pearce
7. Rebecca Voigt Miller
8. Sam Briggs

Read More: Rogue Invitational Strongman Roster Revealed with 7 New Athletes

Yesterday, CrossFit Inc. revealed many changes for the season including dropping 3 Semifinals, standardising and programming all tests for Semifinals, and excluding the Last-Chance Qualifier stage. If you missed that, you can click here to see all 15 changes for the 2023 CrossFit season.

Today CrossFit is revealing the exact dates of each stage of the 2023 CrossFit season.

Dates for the 2023 CrossFit Season

The Open – ONLINE

• February 16 – March 6

Individual Quarterfinal – ONLINE

• March 16 – 19

Team Quarterfinal – ONLINE

• March 29 – 31

Age-Group Quarterfinal – ONLINE

• March 31 – April 2

Age-Group Semifinal – ONLINE

• April 28 – 30

Individual and Team Semifinals – IN PERSON

• May 18 – June 4 (3 weeks)

The CrossFit Games – IN PERSON

• August 1 – 6

For the last time, the CrossFit Games will take place in Madison, Wisconsin. CrossFit is yet to announce where the CrossFit Games will happen for the following years.

Read More: Mat Fraser to Train Sam Kwant, Katrin Davidsdottir and Amanda Barnhart at HWPO Camp

2022 Dubai Fitness Championship Roster

These are the athletes who will be competing at the 2022 Dubai Fitness Championship (DFC) this year.

A total of 20 men and 20 women will be competing on December 2-4, 2022. Last year, Laura Horvath and Roman Khrennikov won the tournament, but both are not returning this year.

Men

1. Fabian Beneito Selles – Spain
2. Giorgos Karavis – Greece
3. Lazar Dukic – Serbia
4. Alex Kotoulas – Greece
5. Jonne Koski – Finaland
6. Aniol Ekai – Spain
7. Vladimir Sechin – Russian Federation
8. Damian Martinez Satorres – Spain
9. Luka Dukic – Serbia
10. Samuel Cournoyer – Canada
11. Luka Vunjak – Serbia
12. Nikita Yundov – Belarus
13. Briant Guillaume – France
14. Javier Gonzalez – Spain
15. Victor Hoffer – France
16. Reggie Fasa – U.K.
17. Michal Wesolowski – Poland
18. Brent Fikowski – Canada
19. Simon Mantyla – Sweden
20. Khan Porter – Australia

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Women

1. Claudia Gluck – France
2. Aoife Burke – Ireland
3. Jamie Simmonds – New Zealand
4. Oihana Moya Oliver – Spain
5. Seher Kaya – Norway
6. Matilde Oyen Garnes – Norway
7. Emily Rolfe – Canada
8. Manon Angonese – Belgium
9. Tayla Howe – U.K.
10. Aimee Cringle – U.K.
11. Freya Moosbrugger – Canada
12. Karin Frey – Slovakia
13. Andrea Solberg – Norway
14. Valentina Magalotti – Italy
15. Maria Langfors – Sweden
16. Ella Kanona Wunger – Sweden
17. Dana Paran – U.S.
18. Valentina Rangel – Colombia
19. Hanna Karlsson – Sweden
20. Lena Richter – Norway

Last year, for the first time, we saw athletes competing on a man-made snow hill. As of yet, we do not know what the workouts planned will be for this year’s competition.

Dubai Fitness Championship Part Ways with CrossFit Inc.

Earlier this week, the organisation announced that it was changing its name from Dubai CrossFit Championship (DCC) to Dubai Fitness Championship (DFC).

Saud AlShamsi, director of the DFC, told BOXROX the decision was made because CrossFit and DFC’s “visions do not match up.”

The organisation was paying $75,000 a year for the licensing of the CrossFit brand in what AlShamsi called “not fair, paying more than anyone in the world,” but he maintains that they still love the Sport and could plan a comeback “if we see that CrossFit matched our vision.”

Although some speculated that the money DFC saves by not paying for the CrossFit Brand would be put into the prize purse to attract more athletes, AlShamsi denied that possibility.

“No, prizes will be the same,” he told BOXROX. “DCC or DFC will always keep on happening and attracting the biggest names in the sport of CrossFit and fitness enthusiasts around the world.”

Read More: How Much Each Athlete Won at the 2021 Dubai CrossFit Championship

The Z-score points system is an idea that has been pushed by data analyst Tyler Watkins and commentator Brian Friend to be introduced in CrossFit.

What Is the Z-Score Points System?

Lovers of CrossFit know more or less how points are given to athletes during a competition. The traditional way is to give a specific number of points to each athlete depending on how the placement of each individual. At the Games, for example, the winner of an event gets 100 points, the 2^nd placed gets 97 points, the 3^rd 94 and so on, regardless of how close each athlete finished compared to others.

The Z-Score points system tells how far a certain data point is away from the average. According to Watkins and Friend, the Z-score would give a much more precise idea of how each athlete performed compared to the average of the playing field.

One simple explanation would be a race. Let’s say the winner of the race finishes the track in 5 minutes. The second place finished in 4 minutes and the 3^rd place finished in 3 minutes and 55 seconds.

In a traditional scoring, the 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place would get 100, 97 and 94 points, even though the 1^st place won by a landslide. In a Z-Score points system, the winner would get 100 points, but the 2^nd and 3^rd athletes would get points that would be much closer to each other, and much further from the 1^st placement.

Crash Crucible Used Z-Score Points System for Leaderboard

Noted, Crash Crucible is not a famous CrossFit-sanctioned event of the off-season, but it grabbed the attention of the Community simply because it ditched the traditional scoring system for the elite individuals. Instead, for the first time, it used the Z-Score points system.

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The Crash Crucible took place in Spartanburg, South Carolina, from September 30^th to October 2^nd.

In the end, here is how the leaderboard ended with the first number being the official Z-Score points system, and the second set of points are from the traditional system – the organisers kept a track of the traditional scores for the individuals.

Male Elite:

1. Luke Parker – 616.13 / 664
2. Hudson Fricke – 588.70 / 601
3. Lee Sharum – 574.46 / 601
4. Marquan Jones – 564.40 / 592
5. Daniel Kuc – 559.95 / 586

Female Elite:

1. Shaylin Laure – 618.32 / 596
2. Alexis Johnson – 570.57 / 594
3. Ellie Hiller – 569.57 / 594
4. Emily Beroth – 543.67 / 516
5. Madeline Helms – 539.38 / 460

Read More: Tia-Clair Toomey Opens Up About Mental Game and the CrossFit Games Programming

CanWest Games

CanWest was a CrossFit competition held in Coquitlam, British Columbia, that took place for the first time since the COVID outbreak. A prize purse of CAD $105,000 was announced and some elite athletes enrolled such as Chandler Smith, James Sprague and Anikha Greer. 12 weeks after the end of the competition and the athletes are still waiting to see any cash that was promised.

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According to Andrew Hiller, who talked to a few competitors from CanWest, athletes heard about regarding a payment schedule for the first time on August 30^th – the competition ended on July 15^th.

The idea was to receive a 25% of the prize on September 30^th, 25% at the end of October and the rest on November 30^th. September 30^th passed last weekend and athletes still have not received anything.

In an e-mail sent by CanFit Productions, which is responsible for putting together CanWest and CanEast, the “CanWest Games operated at a substantial loss this year,” and “actual revenues were well below expectations and we incurred some unexpected last-minute expenses that magnified the loss.”

European Championships

The European Championships is facing similar hiccups when it comes to paying CrossFit athletes what was promised. This competition ended on August 21^st (two weeks ago) and athletes are still awaiting their prize purse either partially or in full.

According to Jason C F Media who reached out to athletes who podium and Carl Saville, the organiser of the European Championships, the spectator attendance made the event in debt.

This “large amount of debt” will be paid if Saville is able to secure more sponsors and investors for the European Championships or even sell the event.

CanEast Next?

Once the news of CanWest not making enough money to pay athletes months after the end of the competition, athletes began talking openly about how the CanEast could be heading in the same direction.

In the comments section of the Morning Chalk Up, the user “emrcow” said that her gym owner received an e-mail asking to “push athletes to sign up or else there wouldn’t be an event due to lack of registrations.” She went on to suggest that CanEast was thrown out to cover the expense of CanWest, but ultimately is suffering the same end result of not making enough money to pay athletes and turn to a profit.

Source: Print Screen

On Reddit, user Fifty6k explained that during CanWest in 2020, the event was postponed due to lockdowns and that athletes shouldn’t take a refund of their entries fees as that “would bankrupt the organisation.” Fast forward two years, the CanWest is now under new ownership and the refund conversation was never held again or followed through.

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Read More: CrossFit Runners Mistaken for Robbers in Brazil as Bar Customers Flee in Fear

Toomey is the most dominant individual CrossFit athlete in the history of the Sport. Rogue Invitational is arguably the biggest off-season CrossFit sanctioned event, but she confirmed she will not be attending this year to retain her title.

Tia-Clair Toomey Won’t Compete at Rogue Invitational; Going Down Under Championship Instead

Tia has shared a video online debating the possibility of still going to the Rogue Invitational, saying that competing as legends could be a possibility. However, when BOXROX talked with Tia-Clair Toomey last week, she explained further what the rest of her 2022 season will look like and Rogue Invitational is not in it.

“I tried to see if I could do Rogue Invitational for sure. I actually had a conversation with Caity Henniger, the lady that runs the Rogue Invitational and her husband Bill Henniger. She actually was the one that kind of gave me the hard talk and said ‘I’m going to make this decision for you because I know it’s hard. I’m not going to let you [compete at Rogue Invitational] because, you know, you need to rest and do the necessary things,” Toomey clarified.

Caity Henniger is talking about the back injury Tia-Clair Toomey suffered two weeks prior to the CrossFit Games that almost prevented her from competing.

If Tia-Clair Toomey is not competing at the 2022 Rogue Invitational, is she done for the year then? Not exactly.

Because Tia is still healing from her back injury and cannot compete at the Rogue Invitational, she chose to compete in a team at the Down Under Championship.

“I did want to have something to look forward to, that gave me enough time to try and recover and get back to 100%, but also come back with not a whole lot of intense pressure on what I’ve got to do,” Tia argued.

And this is why she chose to team up with Brooke Wells and Ellie Turner. “I think it’s a perfect combo. The three of us will be able to have a lot of fun on that competition floor. And you know, it will be a nice, easy way of getting back into the groove of things.”

The Rogue Invitational will take place on October 28-30. The Down Under Championship happens less than a month later, on November 18-20. It would be very taxing on Tia’s body to compete in both tournaments, especially after suffering such a serious back injury.

Read More: CrossFit Event Down Under Championship Shaping Up with Toomey, Garard, Panchik and Wells

How much money will CrossFit athletes earn at the 2023 Wodapalooza? Now we know. Check out the 2023 Wodapalooza prize purse that has recently been shared by the organisers.

2023 Wodapalooza Prize Purse

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The total prize purse amounts to $500,000. The overall winner for men’s and women’s prize cash has been reduced from $100,000 in 2022 to $75,000. However, teams and masters will earn more in 2023 compared to the previous tournament.

Here is the breakdown of each category accordingly:

Elite Individuals:

1^st – $75,000

2^nd – $35,000

3^rd – $25,000

4^th – $10,000

5^th – $8,000

6^th – $5,000

7^th – $4,000

8^th – $3,000

9^th – $2,000

10^th – $1,000

Elite Teams:

1^st – $30,000

2^nd – $15,000

3^rd – $10,000

4^th – $7,500

5^th – $3,500

Masters Divisions:

1^st – $2,000

Adaptive RX:

1^st – $2,000

Last year we saw Patrick Vellner securing the title once again at Wodapalooza (he won the past 3 times). For the elite women, Emma McQuaid took the win. Teams The Boys and Team Kriger won the respective category.

However, this year the format has changed and Wodapalooza will have teams of three, and each athlete in the team will also be able to compete individually if he or she chooses to. Individuals will compete on the first two days with teams competing on days 3 and 4.

If you want to know more about Wodapalooza, check out their main website here or follow them on Instagram.

The 2022 Madrid Championship is a CrossFit-sanctioned event that occurred on September 9-11. It was the first time that Mat Fraser and his HWPO Training Camp programmed a competition of this scope. They were responsible for the program from the Qualifier to the Madrid Championship finals.

The 1st place in each individual elite category took home a prize of €30,000.

Emma Tall and Lazar Dukic Win Madrid Championship

There were a total of 8 events programmed for the weekend in which athletes from different countries (mostly Europeans) battled in a head-to-head competition.

To check out the workouts programmed by Mat Fraser and the HWPO Camp for the 2022 Madrid Championship, click here.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

In the elite women’s division, the question coming into the last day of competition was which Emma would win. Swedish athlete Emma Tall began the last day with less than 30 points ahead of Irish Emma McQuaid.

When McQuaid closed the gap after winning the penultimate event, it all came down to the very last workout. However, Emma Tall showed consistency, grabbed 2^nd place and ultimately finished ahead of McQuaid by 27 points. Third-placed Manon Angonese, from Belgium, almost snatched the 2^nd place by surprise after winning the last event but stayed 4 points behind McQuaid.

1. Emma Tall – 711 points
2. Emma McQuaid – 684 points
3. Manon Angonese – 680 points

Check out the entire leaderboard by clicking here.

Source: Courtesy of Lazar Dukic

In the elite men’s division, the run for the top spot on the podium was less dramatic. Lazar Dukic had previously won two events and was almost certain to guarantee his gold medal. Event a 19^th placement at the “True Form Fitness” event didn’t shake up the leaderboard.

The biggest fight was between the 2^nd through 6^th placement. Spanish athlete Aniol Ekai turned things around at the last event by winning it, which secured him 2^nd place overall. David Shorunke, from the U.K., finished that event 8^th and had to contend with 3^rd place in the finalised leaderboard merely 3 points behind Ekai.

1. Lazar Dukic – 647 points
2. Aniol Ekai – 609 points
3. David Shorunke – 606 points

To check out the entire leaderboard, click here.

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Teams in the elite division at the Madrid Championship were composed of two male and two female athletes and it was a blowout performance by the Norwegian team CrossFit Oslo HSTL. Made – they won 3 events.

1. CrossFit Oslo HSTL. Made – 740 points
2. Krypton – 686 points
3. Training Culture – 680 points

Read More: Mat Fraser to Train Sam Kwant, Katrin Davidsdottir and Amanda Barnhart at HWPO Camp

The competition is scheduled to happen on November 18-20 at the WIN Entertainment Centre, in Wollongong, a coastal city south of Sydney. Like the CrossFit Games, the Down Under Championship has different phases in the competition, with online qualifiers, last chance qualifiers, individuals, masters, and teams competing in the elite division.

Down Under Championship Roster

We will get to see some big names competing in Australia this year. There was a lot of speculation regarding Tia-Clair Toomey retiring after the CrossFit Games, but this is yet to happen. In fact, we will be seeing her in her home country competing, not as an individual, but rather in a team with Ellie Turner and Box competitor Brooke Wells.

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All the big names from Oceania are expected to come as well. So far, already confirmed are Khan Porter, Jay Crouch, Royce Dunne, Maddie Sturt, Bayden Brown, Jake Douglas, and Ricky Garard.

Other athletes also officially confirmed are Saxon Panchik, Lauren Fisher, Will Moorad. CrossFit’s new CEO Don Faul will also be attending the spectacle.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Down Under Championship Details

Where: WIN Entertainment Centre – Wollongong, Australia

When: November 18-20, 2022

What to expect?

The Down Under Championship (DUC) is a three-day event where the best individual, masters, teams, and adaptive athletes will battle head-to-head to see who is the fittest in the competition.

In the elite category, there will be 32 female and 32 male athletes, 24 teams of females (FFF), and 24 teams of males (MMM).

The master category is divided into four subcategories: 35-40, 41-47, 48-54, and 55+. Adaptive athletes are further divided into standing and seated adaptive athletes.

If you want to know more about it, check out the website from Down Under Championship or click here to see their Instagram page where they announce the most recent confirmed athletes competing in the elite division.

Below you will find the athletes able to compete in this online tournament that begins on Wednesday (June 29^th) and ends on Friday (July 1^st).

What Is The Last-Chance Qualifier?

The Last-Chance Qualifier is an online tournament in which individual athletes who were 3 spots shy of getting an invitation to the CrossFit Games at their respective Semifinal have one more opportunity to show they deserve to be in Madison among the fittest on Earth.

Athletes will have to perform a total of 4 workouts, which have recently been revealed by CrossFit HQ, and, at the end of the competition, invitations to the 2022 CrossFit Games will be handed to the top 2 men and women.

Similar to Quarterfinals, the competition will consist of 24-hour event windows as follows:

• Submission Window 1 — Workouts 1 and 2: 12 p.m. (noon) Wednesday, June 29 through 12 p.m. (noon) Thursday, June 30
• Submission Window 2 — Workouts 3 and 4: 12 p.m. (noon) Thursday, June 30 through 12 p.m. (noon) Friday, July 1

*All times are listed in Pacific Time (PT)

** Workouts can be performed in any order the athlete wishes to, but workouts 1 and 2 must be submitted during the first window, and workouts 2 and 3 must be submitted during window 2, with no exception.

Read More: 10 Highlights, Surprises and Shocks of All 2022 CrossFit Semifinals

Athletes Competing

Although 30 athletes were eligible to compete in the online Last-Chance Qualifier, not all athletes will do it and CrossFit did not backfill these spots. Below you will find only the name of athletes who will be participating in the tournament (according to CrossFit’s online platform).

Men

1. James Sprague
2. Griffin Roelle
3. Jacob Pfaff
4. Jake Berman
5. Tyler Christophel
6. Mitchel Stevenson
7. Nick Mathew
8. Timothy Paulson
9. Jonne Koski
10. Luka Dukic
11. Fabian Beneito
12. Royce Dunne
13. Jake Douglas
14. Darren Zurnamer
15. Ruan Potgieter
16. Artur Semenov
17. Andrey Fedotov
18. Agustin Richelme
19. Austin Spencer
20. Connor Duddy
21. Jeremy Vigneault
22. Hamzeh Tarefi
23. Denis Samsonov
24. Bayley Martin
25. Alex Kotoulas
26. Matt Dlugos
27. Anthony Haynes

Women

1. Arielle Loewen
2. Gabby McClelland
3. Kristine Best
4. Sara Sigmundsdottir
5. Elena Carratala Sanahuja
6. Oihana Moya
7. Maddie Sturt
8. Jamie Simmonds
9. Kelly Clark
10. Christina Livaditakis
11. Dawon Jung
12. Kloie Wilson
13. Feeroozeh Saghafi
14. Katrin Davidsdottir
15. Tayla Howe
16. Callista Lang
17. Tori Dyson
18. Hattie Kanyo
19. Or Cohen
20. Masha Savvina
21. Lindsey Porter
22. Claudia Espinosa

Workouts o f the 2022 Last-Chance Qualifier

Event 1

From 0-2 minutes:

• 20 thrusters
• Max-rep bar muscle-ups in the time remaining

From 2-4 minutes:

• Rest

From 4-6 minutes:

• 20 bar muscle-ups
• Max-rep thrusters in the time remaining

125 lb

185 lb

Event 2

For max distance:

• 2,000-m row
• Max-distance handstand walk in the time remaining

9-minute time cap

8-minute time cap

Event 3

For time:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 repetitions each of:

• Clean and jerk
• Shuttle run

155 lb, 50-ft shuttle runs

225 lb, 50-ft shuttle runs

Time cap: 20 minutes

Event 4

2 rounds for time:

• 50 burpee box jump-overs
• 75 double-unders
• 100 wall-ball shots

20-in box, 14-lb ball, 10-ft target

24-in box, 20-lb ball, 10-ft target

Time cap: 20 minutes

You can check out full details for workouts here (such as video submission and movement standards).

BOXROX Predictions for the 2022 Last-Chance Qualifier

With only 2 spots available and the high level of fitness from the athletes competing, some might argue this is the most difficult phase of the CrossFit season.

Nevertheless, there are some big-name athletes we are expecting to see fighting for the top spot and, consequently, getting invited to the 2022 CrossFit Games.

In the men’s division, the most shocking after the Semifinals was Jonne Koski not making the cut. He was last year’s 6^th Fittest Man on Earth and should be on the path to snatch one of the two spots.

Other athletes who could get their invitation to Madison are:

• Luka Dukic (Last year’s 29^th Fittest on Earth)
• Agustin Richelme (2x Games athlete)
• Royce Dunne (4x Games athlete)

In the women’s division, just like in the men’s, one name stands out among all the other capable athletes and that is Katrin Tanja Davidsdottir. The 2x Fittest Woman on Earth and last year’s 10^th place is likely to get her invitation at the end of the week.

However, her path will not be easy as the female roster is stacked with other strong competitors such as:

• Sara Sigmundsdottir (6x Games athlete)
• Kloie Wilson (the best athlete who didn’t make the cut in all Semifinals combined)
• Arielle Loewen (Last year’s 14^th Fittest on Earth)

After the scores have been submitted and CrossFit finalises the leaderboard, we will know the final participants who will be competing for the title of Fittest on earth this year.

The CrossFit Games will take place in Madison, Wisconsin. The CrossFit Games take place on August 3-7.

When CrossFit announced it would program two events across all Semifinals, it was an opportunity to compare how some of the fittest individual athletes in the world stack up against one another.

The events replicated in each of the 10 Semifinals around the world were:

WORKOUT 1 – 2014 Regional Event 5

10 rounds for time:

• 1 legless rope climb – 15 feet
• Run 170 feet

Time cap: 11 minutes

WORKOUT 2 – Barbell complex

3 attempts for max load of:

• 3 cleans
• 2 front squats
• 1 jerk (shoulder-to-overhead)

10 Highlights, Surprises and Shocks of All 2022 CrossFit Semifinals

How We Scored Athletes

Since in both men’s and women’s divisions more than 280 athletes were competing, BOXROX utilised the Open system to discover who was the fittest.

Athletes would get a minimum of 1 point in each event. The fastest person on WORKOUT 1, for example, would get 1 point, the second-fastest would get 2 points and so on. In case of a tie, athletes would get the same amount of points. The scoring system was applied to WORKOUT 2.

In the end, adding both points, the athlete with the smaller number was crowned the fittest.

Athletes with the name in green have received an invitation to the Crossfit games. names in yellow means that athlete can compete at the last-chance qualifier.

Men Leaderboard

Women Leaderboard

Tia-Clair Toomey Dominating (Again)

Tia-Clair Toomey won every single event at her respective Semifinal this year, the only individual athlete to do so this year. When comparing the numbers of both workouts that every 280+ athlete had to endure, she also came out on top with flying colours. Only 3 points – 2 points being the best outcome possible.

Jeffrey Adler Edges Out Competitors

While Tia-Clair Toomey simply dusted the opposition, in the men’s division the race was much tighter. Jeffrey Adler came out on top with 2 points difference from 2^nd place Tudor Magda and Roman Khrennikov.

Justin Medeiros Makes a Statement

Justin Medeiros is the current Fittest Man on Earth on the path to defending his title. Some people consider him not the strongest athlete in the mix – last year at the snatch event he finished 7^th with a 285lb lift.

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

However, his numbers proved he is a well-rounded athlete with great capabilities. Compared with all 281 athletes that did the barbell complex, he came out tied in 8^th.

Best Athletes That Didn’t Make It

We know we are comparing only two workouts out of 6 events, but still it is mind-boggling to see some athletes that did very well on these two events, but failed to get an invitation to the CrossFit Games or to try again at the Last-Chance Qualifier.

On the men’s side, we saw the biggest disparity possible. Luis Oscar Mora, a Mexican athlete who competed at the Mid-Atlantic CrossFit Challenge, finished in 4^th place across all Semifinals in these two workouts but did not get even close to getting to the Last-Chance Qualifier.

At the MACC, his 335-pound lift was the heaviest and he finished the 2014 Regional Event in 5^th place. However, the other workouts programmed for his Semifinal only got him to the 12^th placement, not enough to secure him a chance in Madison, Wisconsin.

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In the top 10, we also saw Kristof Horvath not staying inside the top 8 at the Strength in Depth Semifinal to give him, at least, a spot at the Last-Chance Qualifier. And yes, his last name is famous as he is the brother of 2021 2^nd Fittest Woman on Earth Laura Horvath. He is also the coach of his girlfriend Gabriela Migala, 6^th Fittest Woman on Earth.

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In the women’s division, there was less disparity, but still one athlete in the top 10 did not stay above the cut line at the end of the weekend in her Semifinal. Marie Robin is a 25-year-old French athlete who competed against Katrin Davidsdottir, Jacqueline Dahlstrom, and Emma McQuaid among others at the Strength in Depth Semifinal.

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Robin finished 9^th, one spot shy of receiving the Last-Chance Qualifier spot.

The Best of the Last-Chance Qualifier

Below you will find a list of the best 5 athletes from both divisions that somehow did not get an invitation to the Games just yet, but will probably compete again at the Last-Chance Qualifier.

Best 5 Men Who Got a Spot at the Last-Chance Qualifier

• Artur Semenov – 35 points (Far East Throwdown)
• Griffin Roelle – 58 points (Syndicate Crown)
• Nick Mathew – 75 points (Granite Games)
• Tyler Christophel – 80 points (MACC)
• Matt Dlugos – 94 points (Granite Games)

Best 5 Women Who Got a Spot at the Last-Chance Qualifier

• Gabby McClelland – 55 points (Syndicate Crown)
• Kloie Wilson – 106 points (Granite Games)
• Kelly Clark – 107 points (MACC)
• Lindsey Porter – 121 points (MACC)
• Arielle Loewen – 122 points (Syndicate Crown)

Bottom of The Pack

We’ve seen some of the best athletes in the 2 workouts that didn’t make the cut, but how about the “least fittest athletes” who managed to get a Games invitation.

Last 5 Men Who Qualified for the Games

• Kealan Henry – 329 points (Fittest in Cape Town)
• Pedro Martins – 325 points (Copa Sur)
• Colten Mertens – 234 points (Granite Games)
• Uldis Upenieks – 220 points (Lowlands Throwdown)
• Bayden Brown – 206 points (Torian Pro)

Last 5 Women Who Qualified for the Games

• Julia Kato – 328 points (Copa Sur)
• Seher Kaya – 238 points (Far East Throwdown)
• Brooke Wells – 225 points (MACC)
• Emily Rolfe – 198 points (Granite Games
• Michelle Merand – 180 points (Fittest in Cape Town)

Shortcomings of this comparison

Although the Semifinal events were relatively identical to each other, there are a few factors we need to take into consideration when seeing who was the fittest in our list above.

First and foremost, the order in which the events were fit into the Semifinal’s program. Some organisers decided to have the event at the very end (Atlas had WORKOUT 1 as the last event) while for athletes in other Semifinals the workouts were programmed earlier (Far East Throwdown had the workouts on events 2 and 3). Undoubtedly an athlete is more tired towards the end of a competition program than at the beginning and that can affect the overall performance.

Another factor that could affect the performance of the athletes is the type of competition floor they had to run on. At the Granite Games, for example, athletes did the shuttle run on turf, which can be slippery and make people more conscious about going full-speed.

BOXROX also didn’t take into consideration:

• The temperature of the environment when athletes were competing (the seasons are opposite in the north and south hemispheres).
• Possible travel fatigue – some athletes had to travel across the globe to compete in their Semifinals such as Roman Khrennikov and Tia-Clair Toomey.

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1. Kloie Wilson – The Best Performer That Didn’t Make It

Earlier in April, we made a comparison of which Semifinal had the fittest athletes based on Quarterfinals worldwide average and the Granite Games was the 3^rd hardest tournament in the world. And the person who felt that the most was the up-and-coming Kloie Wilson.

The 24-year-old athlete from the United States has never been to the CrossFit Games and this year it should have been different, but the competition at the Granite Games was too high.

Wilson finished every event at the Granite Games within the top 7 and was 5 points shy of finishing in a qualifying position at the end of the weekend.

She had an average finish of 6.16 at the Granite Games and still couldn’t make the cut to receive her 1^st CrossFit Games invitation.

To put that in perspective, that average would have made her qualify at any of the Semifinals from last year and also this year, except for the Lowlands Throwdown.

At least she will have another chance to showcase her performance at the Last-Chance Qualifier in

2. First Timers

It is easy to bet your money on Tia-Clair Toomey or Justin Medeiros when it comes to winning a CrossFit Semifinals’ event or even the entire tournament. However, in 2022 we saw 24 athletes rising to the occasion and securing their first elite individual invitation to the CrossFit Games.

The Torian Pro was the only Semifinal that did not qualify a new athlete.

Men

• Cole Greashaber (3^rd at the Syndicate Crown)
• Tudor Magda (4^th at the Syndicate Crown)
• Moritz Fiebig (4^th at the Lowlands Throwdown)
• Enrico Zenoni (5^th at the Lowlands Throwdown)
• Dalin Pepper (2^nd at the Mid-Atlantic CrossFit Challenge)
• Kealan Henry (1^st at the Fittest in Cape Town)
• Nasser Alruwayeh (2^nd at the Far East Throwdown)
• Phil Toon (2^nd at the Granite Games)
• Nycolas Joyal (5^th at the Atlas Games)
• Guillaume Briant (5^th at the Strength in Depth)
• Pedro Martins (2^nd at the Copa Sur)

Women

• Christine Kolenbrander (5^th at the Syndicate Crown)
• Matilda Garnes (4^th at the Lowlands Throwdown)
• Lucy Campbell (5^th at the Lowlands Throwdown)
• Rebecca Fuselier (5^th at the Mid-Atlantic CrossFit Challenge)
• Seher Kaya (2^nd at the Far East Throwdown)
• Alex Garzan (4^th at the Granite Games)
• Emma Lawson (1^st at the Atlas Games)
• Paige Powers (2^nd at the Atlas Games)
• Freya Moosbrugger (4^th at the Atlas Games)
• Solveig Sigurdardottir (4^th at the Strength in Depth)
• Elisa Fuliano (5^th at the Strength in Depth)
• Victoria Campos (1^st at the Copa Sur)
• Julia Kato (2^nd at the Copa Sur)

3. Big Names Out of the Games (For Now)

With so many new faces appearing at the 2022 CrossFit Games, surely some more experienced athletes were bound to stay behind. Thankfully, CrossFit has created the Last-Chance Qualifier, an online competition in which the top 3 athletes who just missed staying in a qualifying position at their respective Semifinal tournament get to battle for the last 2 Games invitation.

This year we had some big names who missed out, most notably:

• Jonne Koski (2021 6^th Fittest Man on Earth)
• Jason Smith (3x Games Athlete)
• Agustin Richelme (2x Games Athlete)
• Royce Dunne (4x Games athlete)
• Chandler Smith** (3x Games athlete)
• Katrin Davidsdottir (2x Fittest Woman on Earth)
• Sara Sigmundsdottir (6x Games athlete)
• Arielle Loewen (2021 Granite Games winner)
• Jammie Simmonds (5x Games Athlete)
• Sam Briggs* (8x Games Athlete and 2013 Fittest Woman on Earth)

* Sam Briggs has already announced she won’t be competing any longer and has retired to go back to being a firefighter.

** Chandler Smith did not make the cut to compete at the Last-Chance Qualifier.

4. Miscommunication Led to Scott Panchik’s Injury

Scott Panchik is one of the most beloved CrossFit athletes to date and everyone was sad when he announced his retirement last year. However, he kept on competing for fun and was on the way to securing his 10^th CrossFit Games invitation. That is until workout 3 happened, the event programmed by CrossFit that was forced to every Semifinal competition across the globe.

The event was a combination of legless rope climbs and shuttle runs. After being briefed on the morning of the event, Panchik expressed concerns about the safety of athletes with the amount of rope left on the floor. He asked if the ropes could be cut short, but was “told nothing could be done to change the ropes and this was what was provided to be used.”

During round 3 or 4, as he recalls, he landed on the rope and felt a pop on his knee. Although he finished the workout, he did not come back for the following event and had to withdraw.

You can read a more detailed explanation of what happened here.

5. Clean Sweep for Toomey, Mayhem Freedom, Reykjavik, Oslo Navy Blue

Tia-Clair Toomey is indisputably the Fittest Woman on Earth for the past 5 years in a row and she showed her capabilities once again at the Torian Pro Semifinal by winning every single event. She was the only individual athlete, male or female, to have done that across all CrossFit Semifinals tournaments.

In the teams’ division, there were three groups that deservedly got the media attention: Rich Froning’s CrossFit Mayhem Freedom, Annie Thorisdottir’s CrossFit Reykjavik, and Team CrossFit Oslo Navy Blue. They all swept the competition under the rug and came out with 600 out of 600 points in the competition.

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6. Chandler Smith’s Problems

Chandler Smith was perhaps the biggest surprise of the Semifinals as one of the top athletes that everyone thought would qualify but failed. Not only he did not qualify, but he did not finish in the top 10 at the Granite Games.

Smith is a 3x Games athlete with his best placement being 6^th in 2020 so far. Last year he finished 21^st overall. The question is not if something happened to him to perform poorly, but rather what exactly happened, as Talking Elite Podcast presenter Sean Woodland revealed.

”I have spoken to Chandler. There is a legit reason as to why he performed the way he did. We’re not going to get into details on that, we’re gonna let him do that when he is ready,” woodland said.

So far, Chandler Smith has not given any explanation as to what happened. His last post was uploaded after the Semifinals concluded and he wrote he “put out the worst athletic performance of my CrossFit career.”

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7. Ricky Garard is Officially Back

While the expected comeback has not happened yet for Sara Sigmundsdottir, another athlete is surfing in the renewal of his CrossFit career. Ricky Garard ended up 2^nd at the Torian Pro and is coming back to the 2022 CrossFit Games since he was stripped of his 3^rd place podium finish back in 2017.

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The Australian athlete vouched for coming back to the CrossFit Games and many heads will be turning to him once he hits the competition floor.

Related: 8 Takeaways from Ricky Garard’s Podcast Interview

8. Guilherme Malheiros Lifts 356lb (or did he?)

Most Brazilians already knew beforehand, but since last year after the CrossFit Games, the world was shocked to see Guilherme Malheiros snatching 305lb like it was nothing to claim an event win. So when it came to the barbell complex event that every Semifinal athlete had to go through, all eyes were focused on Malheiros, naturally.

And he didn’t disappoint. He first lifted 152 kilos (335), decided to skip his 2^nd attempt and went for the record on his last lift: a whopping 356 pounds (162 kilos).

That was impressive in itself, however, some people have complained about how he switched from the front squat to the jerk. Most notably, Andrew Hiller took to his YouTube channel to explain why Malheiros record should have been a “no rep” instead.

Hiller argues that Malheiros did the whole spectacle to get extra clicks. He explicitly chose 356 pounds because that is 1 pound heavier than the record previously established by Anthony Davis at the Granite Games.

“He shoved the bar up. Was he re-racking it? I don’t think so, I think he was going for that jerk,” Hiller says. And to prove his point, the YouTuber shows a video of Malheiros practising the exact same workout at home and going from a front squat to jerk almost immediately.

Another good argument from Hiller is the footwork of Malheiros. As he begins the movement of the re-racking, or jerk depending on which team you are on, his foot goes back as it is necessary for the jerk standards.

Hiller goes even further as to show a CrossFit commentator at the Granite Games explaining that once you begin the jerk movement, you cannot catch it and attempt it again. Another video of Panchik is shown with an eerily similarity to Gui Malheiros, but Panchik receives a no rep from the judge.

9. Team Nordic Original vs CrossFit Inc.

Unfortunately, another negative in our list of CrossFit Semifinals highlights. CrossFit Inc. has gone into an investigation and ruled that Viktor Langsved, a member of CrossFit Nordic Original’s team, was in violation of the Affiliate Cup Eligibility Requirements, and was disqualified from competing. The team was able to continue in the competition with a replacement and finished 5 points away from a Games qualifying spot.

In The Sevan Podcast, three members of the team, including Viktor, have explained what happened. That someone told CrossFit about the ineligibility of one of the members and HQ began the investigation.

In short, the team says they send enough evidence to prove Viktor Langsved trains regularly with the team, although he lives close to the 100 miles radius from the Box that is imposed in the rulebook. Viktor is also co-owner of another Box, although he does not train there regularly, which is what could have put him under the spotlight of CrossFit’s investigation.

Antonia Falt-Kottulinsky, one of the team’s members, said they sent to CrossFit HQ photos, training log, and even parking tickets to show Viktor was there on some training days. “It feels like we are getting suspected of faking a gym attendance log and then when we prove that, we have a picture of almost every check-in, they still do not believe that all of the check-ins are real,” she said.

At the Elite Talking Fitness Podcast, Tommy Marquez says he saw the evidence that was sent to CrossFit and, ultimately, thinks that CrossFit made the right call. Former CEO Adrian Bozman went to the official CrossFit podcast to talk about team eligibility requirements and to explain a bit further CrossFit’s point of view.

In response, Viktor said that there was conflicting communication compared to what was told to Nordic Original’s team earlier during the investigation. In an Instagram story, he posted:

When we talked to HQ:

• We could not count outside-training days as training days
• We could not count quarter final days at another gym as training days.
• We could not count competition days as training days
• Could not use the attendance log to show them a pattern that we are training together (Alexander asked them)
• We followed the rulebook

When HQ talked in the podcast:

• Of course you can count outside-training as training days.
• Of course you can count competition days as training days
• The attendance log is a really good way to show them a pattern that you are training together.
• “maybe the rulebook should say ‘and’ in the end of every sentence.”

Also:

• They said we used duplicate pictures for different days. We did not. Is it weird that Alexander wears white t-shirts more than once when he is sponsored by a clothing brand? I don’t think so.
• They also said we used the same bank transactions for different days. If we did that, my bank is showing me the same purchase more than once? So that is not true at all…

One thing is clear, CrossFit needs to make the rulebook clearer and with very specific rules to follow and stick to it.

10. Legend Sam Briggs Retires

Sadly we won’t be seeing Sam Briggs any time soon on the competition floor. After failing to qualify for the CrossFit Games after the Strength in Depth Semifinal, she did not accept her spot at the Last-Chance Qualifier and explained that “it’s time to fight some fires,” recalling her career as a firefighter.

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According to CrossFit’s official platform, Sam Briggs first competed in the Open in 2011 and finished 3rd worldwide. Two years later she would become the Fittest Woman on Earth, the only female athlete from the U.K. to do so to date.

She is currently 40 years old and could have competed in the Masters division in the previous 4 years but chose not to.

She was crowned Fittest Woman on Earth in 2013.

What was your favourite/shocking/memorable moment of the CrossFit Semifinals this year?

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The Atlas Games reunited some of the fittest North American CrossFit athletes this past weekend and it didn’t disappoint. Until the last workout, nobody could predict with certainty who would come out as champion. This was the Semifinal with the closest point difference in the men’s division and 2^nd closest for the women’s (losing only to the Syndicate Crown where Haley Adams won by 6 points).

According to the rulebook, the top 5 men, women and teams received an invitation to the 2022 CrossFit Games at the end of the tournament in Québec, Canada. Individuals who finished 6^th, 7^th and 8^th can take part in the Last-Chance Qualifier.

CrossFit Atlas Games Results

Men

Who Will Make it to the Games?

• Jeffrey Adler
• Pat Vellner
• Alexandre Caron
• Alex Vigneault
• Nycolas Joyal

Who is invited to the Last-Chance Qualifier?

• Austin Spencer
• Connor Duddy
• Jeremy Vigneault

Check out the full leaderboard here.

Women

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Who Will Make it to the Games?

• Emma Lawson
• Paige Powers
• Caroline Conners
• Freya Moosbrugger
• Carolyne Prevost

Who is invited to the Last-Chance Qualifier?

• Callista Lang
• Tori Dyson
• Hattie Kanyo

Check out the full leaderboard here.

Team

Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Check out the full leaderboard here.

2022 Atlas Games Recap

Both in the men’s and women’s divisions the 1^st place was up for grabs until the last workout. Adler and Vellner were never more than 12 points apart from each other with Vellner taking the lead after workout 3, but lost ground in the following events.

Although Emma Lawson was eligible to compete in the teens’ division for the last time this year, she chose the more difficult path and paid off. The Canadian athlete took the lead early on and maintained her position, although Paige Powers crept in behind her and almost got the better result after workouts 4 and 5.

If you missed out on the action, you can rewatch each day of the Atlas Games competition by clicking here.

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Last-Chance Qualifier and CrossFit Games Dates

 The Last-Chance Qualifier is the final opportunity for athletes who are close to finishing in a qualifying spot on their respective CrossFit Semifinal competition. Two CrossFit Games invitations will be sent to the top 2 men and women at the Last-Chance Qualifier.

The Last-Chance Qualifier is an online competition and takes place from June 29 to July 1.

The CrossFit Games will take place in Madison, Wisconsin. The CrossFit Games takes place on August 3-7.

The Copa Sur was the only South American Semifinal that would hand out CrossFit Games invitations to the top 2 men, women and teams. Needless to say, the competition was tough, but Brazilians who went to Vitória to watch the events must have been pleased with an almost all-Brazilian sweep at the podium.

Copa Sur Results

Men

Who Will Make it to the Games?

• Guilherme Malheiros
• Pedro Martins

Who is invited to the Last-Chance Qualifier?

• Agustin Richelme
• Nicolas Bidarte
• Lucas da Rosa

Check out the full leaderboard here.

Women

Who Will Make it to the Games?

• Victoria Campos
• Julia Kato

Who is invited to the Last-Chance Qualifier?

• Claudia Espinosa
• Amanda Fusuma
• Luiza Marques

Check out the full leaderboard here.

Team

Who Will Make it to the Games?

• Q21 CrossFit
• CrossFit Ribeirão Preto

Check out the full leaderboard here.

Copa Sur Recap

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