“If people are doubting how far you can go, go so far that you can’t hear them anymore.”- Michele Ruiz
CROSSFIT OPEN 2021
REMINDER: Score submission for 21.1 is due by 5 PM PT (8 PM PT) today.
MUST WATCH: Logan Aldridge take on 21.1 in the upper extremity, adaptive division.
Some notable names on the leaderboard right now:
Tudor Magda (12:47), Roman Krennikov (14:18), Samuel Kwant (14:39), Joe Scali (585 reps).
Katrin Davidsdottir (12:30), Kari Pearce (13:05), Laura Horvath (14:11), Amanda Barnhart (14:18), Emma Gardner (550 reps),
Reminder: Stay disciplined under fatigue during the wall walks, according to Competition Director, Adrian Bozman. Also, as written, the workout begins with “the athlete standing behind the furthest line from the wall and facing the wall. After the call of ‘3, 2, 1… go,’ the athlete may step over the line, turn around and perform 1 wall walk followed by 10 double-unders.” Review the standards here.
Here are few more Speed Reads:
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The Norwegian CrossFit Throwdown just announced its Summer Throwdown which will take place on August 14-15. It’s a two-person competition with multiple divisions.
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All are eligible for this offer — no Open participation is required.
Breaking: Sara Sigmundsdottir Tears Ligament In Knee, Out For 2021 Season
Fans of Sara Sigmundsdottir received some heartbreaking news Sunday morning.
The two-time podium finisher and fan-favorite revealed via Instagram that she ruptured her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during training earlier this week and the injury will require surgery, effectively ending her 2021 season before it even began.
Sigmundsdottir: “I experienced my biggest nightmare earlier this week when I hurt my knee in training. I felt a click in my knee during a split jerk and went straight to get an MRI scan. The results showed a ruptured ACL.”
It is another tough break for Sigmundsdottir, as the injury occurred just days before the first Open announcement. Perhaps more frustrating is the compounding fact that it follows a 2020 CrossFit Games where she was hampered by the effects from adrenal insufficiency and from a bacterial infection that resulted from a mishap in training.
Sigmundsdottir also switched coaches prior to the 2021 season, and many were hoping that the fresh approach would result in a return to the top of the Games leaderboard following three consecutive seasons outside of the top ten.
In the old CrossFit Games qualification format when a select group of athletes in each Region qualified for Regionals, hardly any big name athletes would post scores early. Quite frankly, it was simply too risky. When an athlete has a score or time to beat, it always makes it a little easier to go after it. Chasing an unknown score is always harder.
Early Saturday evening, the first really big names in the sport (aside from Kari Pearce and Kristi Eramo-O’Connell who did the workout as part of the live Open announcement) showed up on the leaderboard — Katrin Davidsdottir, Amanda Barnhart, and Samuel Kwant; the three of the five Comptrain Camp athletes (three of the five, counting Emma Gardner).
One big thing: The Open is a lot less meaningful than it was last year, in terms of qualification for the next stage of competition (for the top athletes in the sport), perhaps we will see more of those big names entering scores earlier and earlier; and it makes sense for them to do so. Do the workout once, execute it “good enough,” and then get on with their training day, week, and cycle.
Katrin Davidsdottir
When this workout was announced, Katrin immediately came to mind as someone who could potentially set the world record on this event.
Sam Briggs Chasing CrossFit’s Official “Fittest 40 Year-Old in History” Title
Sam Briggs gets quizzed on the same subject, all the time.
“I get asked a lot when am I going to retire or will I go into the masters category,” said the English native who now lives in the US. “I still enjoy training and pushing my body to the extreme it takes to go individual, but realistically it just gets harder and harder each year as I get older.”
Briggs, who won the 2013 CrossFit Games, decided to turn the constant nagging into a challenge. On March 14 after the 2021 CrossFit Open begins, Briggs will turn 39, and has set herself the goal of qualifying for the games the next two seasons. This will mean Briggs will have competed in the elite category a record 10 times, eight of which were when she was over the age of 30.
Four Takeaways From Mathew Fraser’s Interview on the Joe Rogan Experience Podcast
When Mathew Fraser said “you’ll see more of me after retirement than you ever have before,” over a month ago in his “Why I’m Retiring” letter, little did the community know that he meant that he would be making an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience, the most popular podcast in the world, this past Thursday.
In the nearly three hour episode, Rogan and Fraser delved into topics such as his beginnings as an Olympic weightlifter, what drove him to winning five CrossFit Games titles, training and recovery and why he decided to step away from the sport at the peak of his athletic career. Here are four takeaways from the podcast.
No love lost for Dave Castro: Fraser was discussing what motivates him and how certain people were calling his Games performances “flukes” which led to a response from Rogan of “how can anybody say it’s a fluke to win the CrossFit Games, that is literally the dumbest fucking thing.”
That prompted Fraser to discuss the infamous “he’s slipping” comment about Fraser by CrossFit General Manager of Sport Dave Castro prior to the 2020 Games.
A classic mistake in the clean is allowing the bar to crash down into your front rack. This results in misses, difficult recoveries, loss of posture and rack security, forward leaning, imbalance, dizziness and more. To fix this problem, coach Greg Everett suggests practicing tall muscle cleans, tall cleans, and clean complex to drill how to remain connected to the bar throughout the lift.
The science says yes. Dr. Dena Garner, the researcher behind the AIRWAAV Performance Mouthpiecece, proved it to be true through multiple studies over 15 years. So what’s the secret? It’s all about creating the optimal airway opening. Listen to Dr. Dena Garner discuss the science on the Talking Elite Fitness podcast.
Ok, so it's not actually a "trick." It's all about technique and Shane Farmer from Dark Horse Rowing wants to help you improve by developing your transition between sliding forward during the recovery and driving out of the catch position. Optimizing that transition and speeding it up will increase your power output and make you faster, with less effort.
Through March 17 us the code "LUCKY50" to get 50% off Reebok St. Patrick's Day collection, which includes a green NanoX and a green SpeedTR. (US customers only)
These paleo Asian Sticky Wings from Nom Nom Paleo are crispy, sweet, spicy, and perfect for game day during March Madness. With this simple recipe, you’ll get a big batch of healthy finger-licking sticky wings out of your oven or air fryer—and they’re gluten-free and Whole30-compatible to boot. Here's a tip: pat them dry with a paper towel and add baking soda and salt for amazing crispiness.
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