CrossFit Removes Shoe Restrictions for the Games

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“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.” — Steve Prefontaine

GAMES NEWS.

CrossFit Removes Footwear Restrictions at the CrossFit Games

In an exclusive interview with Armen Hammer TV, Greg Glassman revealed that the years-long rule barring athletes from wearing footwear other than Reebok has been lifted and athletes can wear whatever shoes they want at the 2019 CrossFit Games.

• Translation: NIKE, NOBULL, Under Armour, inov-8, Adidas and any other shoe an athlete prefers to wear will be allowed.
• The shoe restrictions were never part of the original contract with Reebok. They were implemented in 2014. Reebok began providing athletes a broad spectrum of footwear for the competition: Nanos, cleated boots, Olympic lifters, Speed TR, and others.
• To be clear, this does not include apparel. Athletes will still be wearing Reebok supplied clothing.

Why this matters. Footwear companies have long expressed frustration that their athletes couldn’t wear their shoes on the biggest stage of their sport — the CrossFit Games. This amounts to a huge missed opportunity for companies like NIKE and NOBULL from marketing their product.

• Viewership by the numbers: According to Facebook, 10.8 million viewers tuned in to watch the CrossFit Games season on Facebook. While some of those numbers include the Open and Regionals, brands are still missing the biggest event which draws millions of viewers.
• With this change, athletes can hopefully negotiate shoe deals that better support them financially.
• Don’t expect to see NIKE and NOBULL in vendor village though. As the title sponsor of the CrossFit Games, Reebok is entitled to protections against direct competitors. That’s not going to change until the contract is up.

Continue reading…

HOW BOUT THAT.

Austin Malleolo Goes for 600 and 26.2

Yesterday, about 30,000 runners assembled to run from Hopkinton to Boylston Street for the annual Boston Marathon. One of those athletes was perennial CrossFit Games athlete Austin Malleolo.

But what made this marathon special was that he preceded his 26.2 mile run with a 600 pound deadlift PR.

• Malleolo: “My goal was to deadlift 600 pounds and run the Boston Marathon in the same day! I figured not many people can do that and it proves the CrossFit methodology is potent and effective and we can create athletes that can have capacity at different ends of the spectrum!”

BUT there was also another reason. Malleolo did it as a fundraiser on behalf of Reebok and Build Our Kids’ Success, whose goal is to raise $50,000 for BOKS before the race on April 15th, with each runner contributing $10k.

• Their mission is to “reverse the physical inactivity pandemic facing our society today. The Reebok CrossFit ONE community is bound by a dedication and passion for fitness – which is why we believe that fitness and wellness should be a human right.”

Point made. Malleolo finished in 4:27 and here’s a video of him crossing the finish line. 

Things To…

WATCH: Team Richey Tours Fraser’s Home

Craig and Jas of Team Richey visited Cookeville, TN. Follow along on their tour of CrossFit Mayhem with Shane Orr and Tia-Clair Toomey. Then, they get a grand tour of Mat Fraser’s home where they get to see Sammy’s kitchen, and Mat’s espresso station, garage gym and gun safe.

HOME SWEET HOME.

HEAR: Why CrossFit and the Games are Better Now

Ben Bergeron and Patrick Cummings, hosts of the Chasing Excellence podcast, list the reasons why CrossFit and the CrossFit Games may be better off under the new format, why the Sanctionals are better tests than Regionals and how athletes are re-learning what it takes to get to the Games now.

A NEW PLAYING FIELD.

BUY: Revtown Italian Milled Denim

Three former Under Armour execs decided that premium, quality jeans shouldn’t have to cost hundreds of dollars. They also should fit right, especially for athletes. That’s why they created Revtown, a premium denim shop for guys who want to look and feel good in their jeans. Premium quality at an affordable price.

THE PERFECT PAIR.

EAT: Homemade Egg Roll Bowls

Homemade egg rolls can be a big production and if you’re trying to eat healthy, they’re definitely off limits. But these easy egg roll bowls save the day. Basically a ground pork and cabbage stir-fry, these egg roll bowls have an amazing crunch and flavor.

HOMEMADE TAKE OUT.

Today’s edition of the Morning Chalk Up is built by

Chalk Up Community

• ONE MIND ONE FORCE — Jesse Crespo, owner and head coach of CrossFit1 Force in West Deptford and also a New Jersey State Trooper, recently suffered a major stroke during routine jaw surgery. On Saturday April 27, CrossFit 1Force will host One Mind, 1 Force to raise funds for the Crespo family while Jesse recovers and receives therapy at an acute care facility.
• STAYING COOL IN SOUTH CAROLINA — CrossFit Greer in Greer, SC is holding a campaign to raise funds for a large overhead fan for their box called Help CFG stay FANtastically Cool.
• TRAGEDY AT CROSSFIT — On April 5 at CrossFit Posted in Brookfield, IL 38-year-old Andy Brook collapsed mid-workout and did not survive, leaving behind a wife and two small children. A GoFundMe has been started to help the Brooks family. 
• WOD FOR VIRGINIA TECH — To commemorate the anniversary of the Virginia Tech shooting, CrossFit 460 in Blackburg, VA will be completing the WOD “32 Hokies.”
• HIRE HEROES —  On May 18, the Hire Heroes USA Alumni Program is running a challenge to raise awareness for Armed Forces Day. Run or walk 5.18k (3.2 miles) and share a picture of your route on social media. The most creative route will win a prize. Tag #ArmedForcesChallenge and tag Hire Heroes USA to
  enter.

CHALK UP IN 2 MINUTES (a highlight reel around social media of CrossFit pros and average joes)

Ashley gets her first muscle-up • Jason Carroll is looking for early morning coaching hours • Krista Nix gets her first rope climb • Christine Kole front squats 255 pounds for three • Margaux Alvarez got some shooting
training in as she prepares for the Rogue Invitational • Sean Hutchinson gets a 285 pound clean • Miranda Kelly gets her first ring muscle-up and on her birthday too • Brooke Ence and FNX are giving away a 1-year supply of Resilience Collagen protein • Jason Khalipa has partnered with Bubs Natural Collagen
Protein.

…and this dog sums up how we felt post-WOD yesterday.

Granite Games 2019 Open — Week Two WODS for the 2019 Granite Games Open will be released tomorrow at 3:00 PM PT. Athletes will have until Monday evening at 5:00 PM PT to complete the WODs and enter their scores. 

Emily Bridgers’ Friend Thomas Has Passed Away — Thomas Mattison, the gentleman living behind CrossFit Terminus, the Atlanta box owned by Emily Bridgers and husband Ben Benson, has passed away.

— Emily writes, “With a very sad heart, I’ve learned that my friend Thomas has passed away. Although our friendship only developed within the last six months, thank you for leaving a lasting impact on me and on our community. You inspired our ‘backpacks for homeless’ event in December…Thomas had a good heart and hilarious sense of humor, was stubborn as a mule, and lived a very tough life. I only wish I could have done more, but I’m relieved that now you are away from addiction and suffering.”

“Reardon, Hethcock, Invictus X win the Mid-Atlantic CrossFit Challenge,” by Tommy Marquez, Morning Chalk Up Team 

The sixth Sanctional of the 2019 CrossFit Games season is in the books, as the Mid-Atlantic CrossFit Challenge (MACC) has wrapped up three days of competition at the historic D.C. Armory in Washington D.C.

When the dust settled, Meg Reardon, John-Paul Hethcock and Invictus X stood atop the podium and earned themselves an invites to the 2019 CrossFit Games in August.

The Invictus X roster of Sam Dancer, Holden Rethwill, Maddy Myers and Chantelle Loehner outdueled a MisFit team comprised of four individual Games athletes, beating them in five of the eight events over the weekend.

Five wins over the course of the weekend weren’t enough for Dani Speegle to walk away with the victory as a resurgent Meg Reardon overtook the top spot in the final event and bested Speegle by just four points.

When Speegle finished back to back events in 8th and 9th place, her only “blemishes” of the weekend, Reardon made up a whopping 50 points by finishing in second and third respectively. Going into the final event she trailed Speegle by just six points, and even though Speegle has already locked up a spot to the Games through the Open, Reardon wasn’t content with second.

A second place finish in the “Amanda 2.0” finale was enough to move her past Speegle, who faltered on the muscle-ups, for the overall win and even though Reardon stated earlier in the weekend her intentions to try and earn a spot to the Games on a team later this season, she now has a solid backup plan after earning her second trip to the CrossFit Games as an individual.

4/10 – 4/24: Granite Games Online Qualifier (Online)

4/15 – 4/27: Top Of The Box Online Qualifier (Clarksville, TN)

4/19 – 5/1: CrossFit French Throwdown Individual Online Qualifier (Online)

4/20: The Wodfather VII 2019 (Keller, TX)

4/20: Rookie Rumble at Bucktown CrossFit (Chicago, IL)

4/20: Barnyard Throwdown (Ohatchee, AL)

4/26: Rookie Rivalry at CrossFit Nashua (Nashua, NH)

4/26 – 4/27: Gameday Competition (Mankato, MN) 

4/26 – 4/28: CrossFit Italian Showdown (Milan, Italy)

4/26 – 4/28: The Sun Coast Fitness Festival (Kwa-Zulu Natal, SA)

4/27: 4th Annual Spring Fever Partner Masters Comp (Souderton PA)

4/27: Rookie Rumble at CrossFit KOA (Cranford, NJ)

4/27: The Gnardog Challenge (Reedley, CA)

4/27: Festivus Games (Worldwide)

4/27: Raising the Bar for Charlotte (Medina, OH)

4/27 – 4/29: Asia CrossFit Championship (Shanghai, China)

4/27: Autism Rocks and Rows (San Clemente, CA)

4/27: Garage Games Xs and Ys (Hiram, GA)

4/27: The Explode Individual Classic (West Chester, PA)

4/27: Fast Times at West Tech High (Las Vegas, NV)

4/27: Tyler’s Voice CrossFit Competition (Jefferson City, TN)

4/27: SWFL Sharks Semi-Pro Grid Combine (Cape Coral, FL)

4/27: Explode’s Independent Classic (West Chester, FL)

4/27: Festivus Games at Crossfit Sav-up (Petaluma, CA)

4/27: 4th annual Apple Town Throwdown (Cornelia,GA)

4/27: Kettlebells for Cojones (Montgomery, TX)

4/27: Spring Fever Partner Master Competition (Souderton, PA)

4/27: Best of the Midwest Team Series Part 1 (Westfield, IN)

4/27: Officer Christopher Goddell Memorial WOD (Walkdwick, NJ)

4/27: Pose Method Run RX Course (Lake Havasu City, AZ)

4/27: Battle of the Boxes (Newport,KY)

4/27: 2019 Pensacola Beach Brawl (Pensacola, FL) 

4/27: Festivus Games at Camel City Crossfit (Winston-Salem, NC)

4/27: Festivus Games at CrossFit LaCrosse (LaCrosse, WI)

4/27: 2019 Growler Games (Lexington, NC)

4/27: The Spring Fling (Knoxville, TN)

4/27: Stepping Into Summer (Fairfield, OH)

4/27: REDLINE.Venice A PAINKLLR Competition (Venice, CA)

4/27:  One Mind 1 Force (West Deptford, NJ)

4/28: David Vs. Golitah (Mansfield, MA)

5/3 – 5/4: Tough As Nails (Lubbock, TX)

5/3 – 5/5 The Fittest Experience (Austin, TX)

5/3 – 5/5: Appalachian Games (Asheville, NC)

5/4: 2nd Annual Heavy Day Morgan (Oak Ridge, TN)

5/4: Battle at the Lab 2019 Cinco De Mayo (Clarksville, TN)

5/4: Border Open Part V (El Paso, TX)

5/4: Desert Warrior (Scottsdale, AZ)

5/4: The Jurassic Classic (Kennewick, WA)

5/4: Lifto De Mayo 2019 (Eagan, MN)

5/4: Rookie Rumble Pittsburgh at Arsenal Strength (Pittsburgh, PA)

5/4: Girls Gone RX Delaware (Middletown, DE)

5/4: Girls Gone RX DC (Alexandria, VA)

5/4: Black and Brewed 2019 (Huntsville, AL)

5/4: Row for Wishes (Telluride, CO)

5/4: The Locomotive Games IV (Youngstown, OH)

5/4: Breaking Boundaries Competition (Greer, SC)

5/10: Beast Mode Games 2019 (Greenville, SC)

5/11: 2019 Moco Throwdown (Bethesda, MD)

5/11: Butchertown Cleaver Classic (Louisville, KY)

5/11: Girls on Girls X (Bridgeport, PA)

5/11: Battle of the Gulf Coast (Port Neches, TX)

5/11: Femme Royale So Cal (Orange, CA)

5/11: Squat for Guate (Hickory, NC)

5/11: Left Coast Classic with 5.11 Tactical (Laguna Niguel, CA)

5/11: Southside Showdown (Jenks OK)

5/17 – 5/19: ACA Throwdown 2019 (Johannesburg, SA)

5/18 – 5/19: Big Impact Games (Kaukauna, WI)

5/18: 2019 Barbells in the Burbs Team Comp (Carol Stream, IL)

5/18: 2019 Tough Temple CrossFit Super Total (Bethseda, MD)

5/18: Mad Hatter Games (Danbury, CT)

5/18: Rookie Rumble at CrossFit Chester Springs (Chester Springs, PA)

5/18: Rookie Rumble at CrossFit PTV (Redmond, WA)

5/18 – 5/19: Shred Fest (Orlando, FL)

5/18: Cindy-a-Thon (San Leandro, CA)

5/18: Fallout in the Falls (Wichita Falls, TX)

5/18: East Coast Battle ( Hanover, MD) 

5/18: Meshugge CrossFit Summer Melee 2019 (Overland Park, KS)

5/19: Heroes and Heroines Team Throwdown (Pawtucket, RI)