CrossFit Games

Three Takeaways From Day 5 of the 2021 NOBULL CrossFit Games

July 31, 2021 by
Photo Credit: Athlete’s Eye
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Day 5 came to a close in the Alliant Energy Center Coliseum on Saturday night and in its wake, a buzz was still in the air from fans of the NOBULL CrossFit Games who were there to witness all the action. Here are three takeaways from the full day.

  1. The magic of the Coliseum: I’ve never got to witness the action at the Tennis Stadium when the Games were held at the StubHub Center in Carson, CA but I heard many great things from the athletes who competed and performed under the lights. What I have been able to bear witness to is the action inside the Coliseum every year since 2017. I’m hard-pressed to think that the Tennis Stadium could be more electric than the energy that flows through the crowd to the athletes.

    Whether it was Mathew Fraser wowing the crowd with his max clean at the 2019 Games or on Saturday night when Annie Thorisdottir not only put on a show for the crowd but for herself. Her performance in the max snatch event will go down in history of the sport. Exactly a year after giving birth to her daughter she showed the world that she’s still a force to be reckoned with and those in attendance got to witness that firsthand. If I were you I would start inquiring about Coliseum tickets now for the 2022 Games.
  2. Not giving in to the Mayhem: It’s a foregone conclusion that unless CrossFit mayhem Freedom just forgets to set their alarm, oversleep and miss Sunday’s events, that they will win their fifth Affiliate Cup. They have a 173 point lead with three events left to go on Sunday. However, on Saturday, they showed some cracks in the armor as they actually won just one event and had their two worst finishes of the competition, placing fifth in Team Event 8 and then sixth in Team Event 10. This, after winning the first five events of the Games.

    Teams are showing they aren’t going down without a fight but none more than CrossFit Oslo who is in position to become the first-ever European team to finish on the podium. They sit in second place on the overall leaderboard and have won two events. As the team division evolves once again back to the affiliate model, expect to see that gap close a little bit more, but I wouldn’t bet against Mayhem and Rich Froning anytime soon.
  3. Thoughts and prayers to Brooke Wells: I would be remiss if we at the Morning Chalk Up didn’t send our thoughts and well wishes to Brooke. Her injury on the competition floor was gruesome and heartbreaking. Sometimes we get too caught up in how strong and amazing these athletes are but the truth is that they aren’t superhuman. So to see that happen on this stage was rough for everyone to see.

    It was hard for her family, friends, coaches and support staff to watch. Her PRVN teammate and friend Tia-Clair Toomey dedicated her win in the snatch event to her and passed along to us that she’s resting and surrounded by family. One of the amazing things about the CrossFit community is our ability to rally around people and help them through tough times. We can do that for Brooke and we hope to see her healthy and smiling on the competition floor soon. 

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