Strength in Depth: Final Recap
The sold-out NOCCO Arena was treated to a show of CrossFit greatness on the final day of the Strength in Depth Sanctional on Sunday afternoon. The women’s and team competitions came down to the final event as Laura Horvath and Mayhem Freedom took their respected titles, while Mathew Fraser continued his dominance, winning the men’s title.
The battle for the individual Games invites went to two athletes who previously competed at the Games on teams and now will be making their first appearances as individual competitors in Madison.
Team Division: Mayhem Freedom punched its sixth consecutive ticket for the CrossFit Games in an epic comeback. After placing ninth in the opening event and sitting in fourth after day one, the team of Rich Froning, Tasia Percevecz, Chyna Cho and new team member Scott Panchik reeled off five straight wins to overcome Team WHEY’D for the lead. Heading into the final workout with just an 18-point lead over WHEY’D, Mayhem secured their second ever Sanctional title with a second-place event finish.
- Five event wins in London gives Mayhem Freedom a career total of 12 Sanctional victories, the most by any team since the implementation of the Sanctional format.
- Including the Games, Mayhem Freedom has won 17 out of a possible 35 events that they have competed in since the Sanctional format was introduced. The 17 wins are the most of any team.
- The automatic Games invitation for Rich Froning will be his 11th-straight. He competed as an individual from 2010-2014.
- For Panchik, he will be making his ninth-straight Games appearance and first as a member of a team.
- Cho will be making her seventh-straight Games appearance and second-straight with Mayhem Freedom.
- Team WHEY’D finished second, just 28 points behind Mayhem Freedom.
- CrossFit Roseland won the final event, beating Mayhem Freedom by five seconds.
Women’s Division: Laura Horvath held just a five-point lead over Polish national champion Gabriela Migala heading into the final event, but showed no signs of nerves or pressure. She dominated the final and even cracked a smile while finishing up her last overhead squats as she racked up her fourth event win of the weekend and secured the top podium finish.
- After a disappointing 2019 season for the 2018 CrossFit Games runner-up, Horvath picked up her first career Sanctional title.
- Kelsey Kiel is heading to the 2020 Games after earning the Sanctional invitation with her fifth-place finish.
- The top four finishers, Horvath, Migala, Haley Adams and Camilla Salomonsson Hellman all had their invites to the Games secured.
- Horvath now has five career Sanctional event wins.
- Kiel finished second in the final event behind Horvath to clinch her Games invitation. It was her second runner-up finish of the weekend. Kiel finished in the top four in three of the final four events to secure her ticket to Madison.
- Steph Chung, competing in her third Sanctional of the season, finished sixth just behind Kiel for the Games qualifying spot. She finished with four top-five finishes including a third and fourth place on the final day of competition.
- Migala was able to put pressure on Horvath into the final event thanks in part to six top-five finishes, including two event wins.
Men’s Division: The Fittest Man of Earth, Mathew Fraser, looked in championship form as he again dominated the competition floor. He was a perfect five for five in event wins inside the NOCCO Arena. He won his third career Sanctional in as many tries by winning taking all four of the final events of the weekend in succession.
- Fraser’s 116 point victory is the largest margin of victory for a male athlete this season.
- With his five event wins in London, Fraser now has 15 Sanctional victories in 24 events.
- Including the 2019 Games, Fraser has 21 wins in 36 events since the beginning of the Sanctional format.
- Runner-up David Shorunke will receive the 2020 Games invitation. The hometown favorite overcame Lukas Hӧgberg in the first event of the day for the coveted spot. He held a nine-point lead heading into the final and was able to finish ahead of Hӧgberg to clinch his first career individual Games invitation.
- Shorunke, who finished two spots below the final Open cutline, will join fellow countrymen Zack George and Elliot Simmonds and represent the Union Jack in Madison, Wisconsin.
- Hӧgberg’s bid to become the first male athlete to earn a Games berth without competing in the Open came up one place short. After sitting in the invitation spot heading into the final day, he placed 11th and fifth in the final two events.
- Over the final five events, Shorunke’s average place was third while Hӧgberg’s average place was 8.8. Shorunke’s worst finish during that span was fourth.
- Bronislaw Olenkowicz’s fell short of defending his Strength in Depth title, despite a strong finish. He also came up short for the Games invite. In the final five events, his average placing was 2.8, including three runner-up finishes to Fraser.
The Final Top 10 Leaderboard
- Laura Horvath (562) | Mathew Fraser (612) | Mayhem Freedom (628)
- Gabriela Migala (541) | David Shorunke (496) | Team WHEY’D (600)
- Haley Adams (499) | Lukas Hӧgberg (483) | TRAINLIKEFIGHT.COM (550)
- Camilla Salomonsson Hellman (416) | Bronislaw Olenkowicz (476) | Vondelgym Motion (530)
- Kelsey Kiel (409) | Giorgos Karavis (441) | CrossFit Roseland (344)
- Steph Chung (359.5) | Andre Houdet (434) | AOD Fitness (324)
- Nicole Chovan (301) | Haraldur Holgersson (404) | Team Nordvest Black (300)
- Tayla Howe (279.5) | Will Moorad (404) | Team Aarhus CrossFit (294)
- Carys Webster (277) | Nicolay Billaudel (366) | Stratton Oakmont (268)
- Alison Scudds (261) | Sam Stewart (363) | CrossFit Chester Elite (238)
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