Its tough to pinpoint my favorite moments from this years CrossFit Games. There are a LOT of things that stood out from both a purely fun or pure performance perspective. I have the goal of counting down from 10-1 but I reserve the right to add or subtract moments as I see fit!
Disclaimer: this list does NOT include any moments from Jay’s performances…those deserve their own lengthy post, which is under development currently.
10. Becca Voight’s Perpetual Smile:
For those that don’t know, Rebecca Voight has been to nine consecutive CrossFit Games. NINE! She has proven time and again that her fitness is unbelievably good, even as the competition gets harder and the competitors get younger each year. But without fail, before, during, and after every single event, she had the face of someone who was thoroughly enjoying every moment. And in the moments where she did not perform well at all, she looked to the crowd to cheer her on and showed appreciation for it immensely.
9. Team Sprint Relay:
If you know me well enough, you know that I am a HUGE fan of sprinting…mainly because the distance is short, HA, but also because I’m pretty quick myself. Plus the good races are usually super close, forcing people to push to places they’re not comfortable going. Sprinting, when done correctly, hurts badly. Go to 28:00 minutes to watch a close finish in the first heat, then to 58:00 minutes to watch CrossFit Parallax DESTROY everyone else. And then for a small chuckle, go to 1:28:00 to watch Froning run (he’s second to last for his team)…at least there is one thing I know I can beat him at!
8. 17 Year Old Gabriela Migala’s 210 Pound Clean:
So the entire teenage division was awe inspiring the whole week. But being the Olympic Weightlifting snob that I am, I had to pick out this monstrous lift by the 17-year old. For good viewing, watch the entirety of the boys and girls (squat) clean event, they’re only 5 minutes long…and will make you shake your head in amazement after every single lift. But hers was my favorite for a couple of reasons: it was the heaviest of the girls by 17lb and seeing her watch the clock to time her lifts made me so proud as a coach! The boys lifts start @ 13:00 (1 of which cleaned 335 and another at 325…at 17) and the girls starts @ 33:00. Gabriela’s 210 is right at 37:30:
Stay tuned for more of my favorite moments. Hard to imagine that they could be much better than what I’ve already reflected on!