“It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.”- Madeleine Albright
NEWS
Another Banned Athlete Competes at Local Comp without Event Director’s Knowledge
Last weekend, another athlete who is currently serving a multi-year drug-related suspension from CrossFit competed in a non-licensed competition and earned $2,000 in prize money. Fanny Solis, who is nearing the end (June 2022) of her four-year suspension for stanozolol, an anabolic agent, took second in the M/F elite team competition at the Crash Crucible in Spartanburg, SC. Once again, the organizer said he was unaware that one of the registered athletes was currently banned.
As we noted, non-licensed events are free to allow athletes to compete at their discretion and athletes are also not required to notify organizers unless an event requires it.
The details: Three years ago, the drug sanction was issued to Stephanie Araujo, whose full name is Stephanie Solis Araujo. Her CrossFit Games profile lists her as Fanny Solis Araujo.
According to Solis, she goes by Fanny Solis: “I’m Stephanie Solis and I always register like this to compete…I hardly ever use the Araujo, only in ‘official’ records.”
A conversation with a Mexican member of Morning Chalk Up staff confirms this is a common practice in Mexico.
“I just want to make clear that it was not like that,” Solis told Morning Chalk Up.
According to the organizer James Howell, “the athlete did not register for Crucible under the same name that they went by when their failed drug test occurred.”
It’s important to note that Howell denied access to Stephanie Roy, who had originally registered to compete prior to being issued a drug ban, but was subsequently notified that she could no longer compete after the positive test became public.
Howell: “I was flattered and honored to know that a two-time Masters champ would think of my competition as a way to test herself against other elite females in the sport.”
After Roy found out she failed her drug test at the Games she contacted Crash [Crucible] and heard back from James Howell, the event director right away. “He showed me lots of empathy and wished me good luck”, but ultimately he told her she could not compete at his event while being banned by CrossFit.
Howell: “Ultimately I didn’t think letting her compete would foster a level playing field among the other competitors.”
The bottom line: This is now the third athlete in recent weeks to compete in a non-licensed event while serving a drug-related suspension. It’s also the second competition unaware that an athlete standing on the podium was under suspension, exposing an information gap in the CrossFit industry as there’s no public database of athletes currently serving a ban.
This list was populated over the last 24 hours using publicly available information originally published by CrossFit. It may be incomplete.
If there are athletes missing from this list currently serving a sanction, please email [email protected].
Food for thought: Perhaps, as an additional measure, events could ask if athletes are currently serving a drug-related suspension from CrossFit on the registration form.
Who Is Taking Home The Prizes in Week Two of The Zelos Games?
This is your midweek warning: Workout two for The Zelos Games is live…and you may recognize it from somewhere.
Last week’s workout saw huge performances from top athletes like Danielle Brandon, Bethany Shadburne, and Kari Pearce.
This week, things are heating up even more.
But what if you’re not an elite athlete (yet)?
Aside from the reward of your hard work, there’s over $10k of raffle prizes from brands like FITAID, Reebok, and Xendurance for competitors who place outside the top 10.
Gui Malheiros, the seventh fittest man on earth, finished his first full week of training at CrossFit Mayhem in Cookeville, TN. The rising star will be training stateside through Rogue before heading off to the U.A.E. for two competitions: Mayhem Desert Heat and Dubai CrossFit Championship.
Camille Leblanc-Bazinet becomes the newest Born Primitiveathlete. Leblanc-Bazinet recently transitioned to competitive bodybuilding after nearly a decade competing in CrossFit.
The only athlete from South Korea to qualify for the 2021 CrossFit Games, 22-year-old Choi Seung-yeon, on her plans for the future of CrossFit in South Korea:
“I didn’t think CrossFit would ever be this popular in South Korea…I believe the popular impression in South Korea that you can easily get injured by doing CrossFit can get better when CrossFit coaches can teach people in a more fun, yet safer way.”
“My final goal now is to join the Games, hopefully next year, and get a good result so that I can further promote South Korea and Asia in the world of CrossFit. I feel a deep sense of gratitude to CrossFit, because the sport has really changed my life.”
CROSSFIT GAMES
2022 CrossFit Games Season Schedule
So far, we don’t have a very clear picture of how the CrossFit Games season will shape up and if any changes are being made to the overall structure and format. CrossFit was early to announce the start of the 2022 CrossFit Open, but has been silent since July.
The following is a list of major events in the pre-season. Morning Chalk Up will be providing some on-site coverage at select events. Bookmark our season calendar as we will make periodic updates as information becomes available.
Pre-season:
October 29-21: Rogue Invitational (Austin, TX)
November 12-13: Mayhem Desert Heat (Ras Al Khaimah, UAE)
December 16-18: Dubai CrossFit Championship (Dubai, UAE)
January 13-16, 2022: Wodapaloozaa (Miami, FL)
Season:
February 24: CrossFit Open
TBD: Quarterfinals
TBD: AGOQ
TBD: Semifinals
Last week of July or first week of August: CrossFit Games
INDUSTRY
MEMBER EXCLUSIVE
Trending: Affiliates Circle Back to Old School Marketing Tactics to Generate New Business
In the early CrossFit days, “marketing strategy” wasn’t really in the affiliate owner’s vernacular. Acquiring new clients was more or less a grassroots, organic process that relied almost entirely on word of mouth.
By the time 2011 hit, CrossFit had become more mainstream, and in the years that followed affiliates hopped on board more modern and popular marketing tactics and large scale marketing campaigns, from Groupon, to ClassPass, to GymBuildr, Gym Launch, to paid Facebook ads.
And while they say each of the above worked to varying degrees to generate new clients, in 2021 many gym owners are once again taking a more grassroots and organic approach to lead generation.
Today, many gym owners are focusing their efforts on creating a referral culture, on creating organic social media content, and even on old school, cost-effective guerilla marketing tactics, and have found these strategies are bringing them higher quality clients than their marketing efforts of the past.
Not all of us have access to an echo bike, treadmill, assault bike, rower, and ski erg in our garage. But that doesn't mean you have to skip certain parts of a workout. Check out this handy guide to learn the calorie, time, and distance conversions between popular cardio equipment.
Today kicks off Reebok UNLOCKED week. Join Reebok's free loyalty program to access athlete interviews, major drops, special offers, and massive sweepstakes. Everything kicks off today with exclusive early access to the Reebok x Ghostbusters collection.
The Difference Between a Head Coach and A Specialist Coach
When it comes to coaching a CrossFit Games athlete, it takes a village. Most athletes have one coach they're known to work with, but what about the plethora of specialists they work with as well? Hear Chris Hinshaw on the difference between his work and that of a CrossFit Games head coach.
Start tracking your body's performance with a free WHOOP Strap 4.0 and first months membership. WHOOP measures your body's data over 100 times a second to provide personalized feedback on your recovery, strain, and sleep. Giving you the data you need for your top performance.
Find yourself leaning or stumbling forward when jerking? A simple fix in your grip and bar position can fix this and have you straightening up instantly. Check out the correct technique in this demo by Sage Burgener.
Congratulations Olivia Gravelink from Coachman Strength and Conditioning in Byron Center, MI on the 230 pound/104kg clean PR.
🏃Former CrossFit Games athlete Alex Parker ran the Chicago Marathon in 3:22 (7:35/mile pace) and raised more than $18,000 for the Leukaemia and Lymphoma Society.
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