Eight Highlights from the Teen Competition this Weekend
The teen competition of the CrossFit Games has come to a close. After three days filled with eight grueling workouts, the results have settled and the teens have once again proved that they are truly the future of this sport. Here are eight big highlights from the week that you need to know.
The 16-17-year-old Girls Proved Their Strength
In Test 1 of the Age Group competition, CrossFit tested athletes on their strength and Olympic Lifting technique with the Olympic Total. While all the athletes managed to put forth some impressive lifts, perhaps most noteworthy were those of the 16-17 teenage girls division.
- 17-year-old Hayley Rolfe would take home first in this test with an Olympic total of 430 pounds.
- If she had been competing in the 35-39 division, this would have earned her first place in the 35-39 division, which featured several former Games athletes, including Dani Horan and Stacie Tovar.
- Beyond Rolfe, all of the top five lifters in the 16-17-year-old division would outlift the 35-39 top women.
- More than just their strength, the girls continued to prove themselves in workouts like Helen, where first-place finisher Lucy McGonigle and second-place finisher, Hayes Willard outperformed first-place finisher of the 35-39 division, Laurie Clement.
- It was moments like these when the 16-17-year-old girls proved that they are here to make their mark as the future of the sport.
- While many of them will age out of the teen competition season next year, there is no doubt they’re ready for the next level of competition.
Kaiden Hogan Called His Shot
While Hogan struggled on the first day of competition, finishing 9th and 10th in the first two workouts, he knew that he had to make his comeback on the second day. And the Cross-Country 5K was the perfect place for him to do that.
- In an Instagram DM to the CrossFit Games, Hogan wrote, “Get ready, I’m calling my shot with the 5K tonight.”
- The next day, Hogan did not disappoint. The 17-year-old multi-year teen division veteran ran 3.1 miles in 17:46.09, nearly ten seconds faster than second-place finisher Hugo Jansson.
- Hogan would also run the second fastest time of all age groups, finishing just ten seconds behind Adam De Jong of the 35-39 division.
- In a follow-up DM to the CrossFit Games later that evening, Hogan wrote, “See that got the W.”
The 14-15 Girls Division Proves Their Ready For The Next Level
In the Olympic total, the top 7 14-15 teen girls all put up numbers that could have earned them a spot on the 16-17 year old girls leaderboard.
- Most notable was Miley Wade, who would have tied for 7th in the 16-17 division with a 365-pound Olympic total.
- Wade also would have taken sixth in the 35-39 division.
Ty Jenkins Extends his Reign
While there were eight tests over the course of three days of competition, 17-year old Ty Jenkins only needed two of those days to prove that he would be taking home his second title in the 16-17 division.
- After just two days of competition, his fellow competitors would need Jenkins to place eighth or lower in the final two tests for them to close the gap he had created between them.
- Ultimately, Jenkins concluded his week with a 170-point lead over second-place finisher Hugo Jansson.
- With only one finish outside the top five the entire weekend, Jenkins won five of the eight tests, including “Pulling Power,” where he beat the second-fastest competitor, Kaiden Myers by over 45 seconds.
- While he will age out of the teen division next year, there is no doubt that he will be returning to make his mark in the individual division. A goal he told Morning Chalk Up about in an interview last year.
Lucy McGonigle Proves That She Can Dominate No Matter The Division
Last year, 15-year-old Lucy McGonigle dominated the 14-15 teenage girls division, beating second-place finisher Rylee Beebe by 100 points.
- This followed her second-place finish in her first year in the teen division in 2021.
- This year she has extended her winning streak by another year, taking home first place in the 16-17 division after a tight race with second-place finisher Trista Smith.
- While Smith and McGonigle were tied heading into the final day, the 16-year-old Irish athlete was able to finish the final two tests in first and third to widen the gap between the two of them to thirty points and take home the victory.
- With one more year remaining in the teen division, the future is bright for this teenage superstar.
Trista Smith Makes It To The Podium In Her Final Year
While Smith had some incredible workouts in last year’s competition, including several top-two finishes, the 16-year-old just barely missed the podium by ten points.
- This year, Smith returned ready to make a mark in her final year.
- Headed into the final day, she was tied with fellow competitor Lucy McGonigle.
- While McGonigle would prove to be the ultimate victor, Smith still held a 170-point lead over third-place finisher Bergros Bjornsdottir.
- Over the course of the weekend, Smith had no finishes outside the top five and proved that she more than deserved to be on the podium during her final run in the teen division.
The Quest For The Fittest Kaiden
In the 16-17 year old division, two Kaidens, Kaiden Hogan and Kaiden Myers battled it out to see who was the fittest Kaiden.
- Ultimately, the tests of the week proved that they were both nearly equally fit.
- The two Kaidens ended the competition with 570 points and fourth place would come down to a tiebreak.
- Ultimately Hogan won the tiebreak and ended the week in fourth while Kaiden Myers would end the week in fifth overall.
Maria Granizo Becomes The First Argentinian To Win The Teen Division
This weekend, Granzio would become the first athlete from Argentina to win in the teen division after taking first in the 14-15 girls division.
- Other international firsts include Pau Martin Tiers, who became the first Spanish athlete to podium in the 14-15 boys division.
- Mira Varga of Hungary also became the first Hungarian to podium in the teen division, taking third in the 14-15 girls division.
- These victories are a testament to the continued international expansion of the sport of CrossFit, including to its youngest athletes.
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