CrossFit Games

Teens Trista Smith and Lucy McGonigle To Take On Individual Semifinals

March 23, 2023 by
Image Credit: Ava Kitzi
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With Individual Quarterfinals behind them, CrossFit Games teen athletes Trista Smith and Lucy McGonigle have proven themselves as strong up-and-coming athletes to keep an eye on in the coming years. At 17- and 16-years-old respectively, both girls (unofficially) qualified for Individual Semifinals before exiting the teenage division. 

This continues the trend of strong rosters in the younger division now that the likes of Mal O’Brien, Emma Cary, and Paige Powers have officially aged out of the group. 

One big thing: In years past, athletes that qualified for Semifinals in multiple divisions had to choose, meaning that athletes like Olivia Kerstetter were required to decide between going teen or individual early on. That rule has changed this year, as laid out in the 2023 CrossFit Games Rulebook.  

  • 3.08 “Athletes who qualify in an age-group division and as an individual OR on a team may compete in the Age Group Online Semifinal and in the division they have qualified for at the in-person Semifinal.”

Both Smith and McGonigle have decided they’ll compete in both Individual and Age Group (assuming they qualify) Semifinals. McGonigle says that she’s not committed to going to the Games as an individual this year, and is going to the European Semifinal to gain experience competing with her idols and have fun. 

On top of that, the 16-year-old has exams scheduled for the same weekend as she will travel to Berlin, so she will have to balance both her academic and athletic commitments. 

  • “I don’t really have any expectations because I have a whole bunch of exams during (European Semifinals)…so just getting those out of the way and do a decent job, like don’t screw them all up,” McGonigle said.  “Now that I’m in the season, it obviously tailors toward CrossFit a bit more because I know I shouldn’t be, but I am focusing more on CrossFit than school.” 
Image Credit: Ava Kitzi

Since last season, where McGonigle swept every competition of the season and won the Games by 100 points, she says that her training program has completely changed. 

She recently joined Comptrain and Jarrett Smith and partnered with Mike Molloy from M2 Performance Nutrition to give her performance a boost. 

  • “I used to program for myself so I didn’t have very much structure, I was just doing everything I thought was right which now that I’ve joined CompTrain I know I was doing a lot of stuff wrong,” McGonigle said. “It has been crazy just the improvements I’ve seen just in the offseason compared to when I was training for the Games. I’m improving so much more so it’s been crazy.”

Smith also says she’s seen a lot of improvements over the past year. She trains under the watchful eye of Adam Neiffer and with Justin Medeiros and Ellie Turner on a daily basis and says that going into this season, she feels prepared for whatever comes her way. 

  • “This year I’d say what’s changed is that I’m way more confident and comfortable, I feel like I know what I’m doing out there. I just feel like a really seasoned competitor now,” Smith said.  She says that where in the past she would let her emotions get the best of her and get frustrated during workouts, she was able to keep herself in check during the crossovers during Quarterfinals. “I just feel very in control and when I get frustrated, I don’t really show it.”
Image Credit: Ava Kitzi

Smith is gearing up for a busy qualifying season, with Age Group Quarterfinals, Individual Semifinals, and Age Group Semifinals coming up. She says that while her fitness is still a work in progress, she is happy with her performances so far this year. Plus, Smith says she isn’t closing off her mind to going Individual this year. 

“Honestly, I’m just taking it one day at a time,” Smith said.

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