In 2012, CrossFit Games athletes were asked where they think the Games will be in five years.
“If you would have asked me that five years ago, I would have said we’d still be at The Ranch with steel bleachers, hanging out,” said Chris Spealler. “I think people at the Games will be only treating CrossFit as a competition and that will be their livelihood.”
Azadeh Boroumand said, “It might be like the Olympics, all over TV every four years. It might be like that, where everyone all over the world is looking forward to the CrossFit Games once a year.”
Fourteen years later, the futuristic thoughts of 2012 Games athletes are now a reality.
The CrossFit Games started with a few barbells and a barbeque with fitness enthusiasts on a ranch in Aromas, California. As the race to find the Fittest on Earth started to gather attention, it outgrew The Ranch and expanded to the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, in 2010, allowing the sport to have a larger fan base.
The next year, the CrossFit Open was introduced as the first stage of the CrossFit Games season, allowing anyone in the community to participate in the sport. The prize money for each winner at the Games began to increase from $500 in 2007 to $275,000 by 2016. Soon, sports networks began to pick it up.
While the Games were hosted in Carson from 2010-2016, they started gathering attention. But as Cole Sager said, “There was still something grassroots.”
Even after expanding to a larger venue, the sport was still in its infancy.
In 2017, the CrossFit Games moved to Madison, Wisconsin, where it took up shop for the next seven years. But in 2024, the Sport of Fitness returned to the same venue in Carson to host the North America West Semifinal.
Over 10 athletes who competed during the Carson era qualified for the West Semifinal, showcasing just how far the sport and its athletes have evolved over the years.
Jamie Hagiya at the 2024 North America West Semifinal | Photo by Adam Bow
Same Venue, New Sport
“The average ability of people in Heat 1 here (at the 2024 CrossFit Semifinals) is probably better than a lot of the field at the Games in 2016 when I was here last,” Patrick Vellner said.
Over the years, the CrossFit Games have adapted to match the evolution of fitness. As each year passed, the development of human capability increased, so the test to find the Fittest on Earth became much more challenging.
If the athletes today were to retest every event from the 2016 CrossFit Games, it would be safe to say the majority would improve their scores.
Take the 2024 Semifinals Event 5 Snatch Ladder as an example. This event was a replica of the 2016 Regionals Event 1. Of the 27 returning 2016 Regionals men, 20 improved their scores, and of the 19 returning women, 16 improved.
Patrick Vellner during 2024 Semifinal Event 5 | Photo by Adam Bow
“It’s incredible to think that people are still continuing to get fitter, they’re getting stronger, they’re getting faster. I would have never expected that,” Sam Dancer said. “We were seeing a lot of collegiate and ex-professional athletes coming into the sport (eight years ago) who were pretty darn physically fit. But the needle keeps rising, the bar keeps getting set higher. It’s remarkable to be out there with some of the athletes.”
For most, pursuing the CrossFit Games was a hobby outside of work. Not many were making a living off of prize and sponsorship money
Brent Fikowski famously took fourth place in his rookie year at the 2016 CrossFit Games while working full-time as an accountant. Fellow Canadian Vellner took third that year while studying full-time.
Today, however, the opportunity to make this sport a full-time career has become attainable.
Athletes began to hire coaches to help be the masterminds behind their training. This included an array of coaches in every specialty from weightlifting, endurance, gymnastics, and nutrition. They started to gain sponsors and large followings on social media, allowing many to quit their 9-5’s and train full-time for the CrossFit Games.
“We’ve definitely professionalized… people are really trying to make this a career. That was a budding thing back then,” Sager said. “I wanted to make it a career myself, and the fact that we could do that with our sport is really, really cool, and speaks to the passion behind the sport.”
Cole Sager during 2024 Semifinal Event 3 | Photo by Adam Bow
But just because the CrossFit Games have allowed athletes to pursue this passion full-time, doesn’t mean the most elite athletes can’t succeed while working or being full-time parents.
Through a dedication to the CrossFit methodology for only a few hours a day, Arielle Loewen qualified for the CrossFit Games three times while still being the best mom to her daughter, Blakely.
Twenty-four-year-old Shelby Neal also qualified for three CrossFit Games, two while in high school, and one while working as a full-time engineer.
It all comes down to discipline, hard work, and pure athletic talent.
That is what the CrossFit Games is all about. Searching for the best athletes on the planet, who are willing to fix their weaknesses, put in the work, and prove to the world they are the most well-rounded athletes, worthy of holding the title of Fittest on Earth.
HOW CROSSFIT FINDS THE FITTEST ON EARTH
Some Things Never Change
Although the sport has evolved significantly over the years, one thing has never changed: The connection to the true spirit of the CrossFit community.
Every athlete on the competition floor may be vying for one championship title, but there is never a lack of camaraderie and respect. The last athlete to finish will always get the loudest cheers, from both the crowd and their fellow competitors.
Athletes still fist bump each other after each event because although they are fighting for the same end goal, they too know how difficult the event was.
And just like during the Carson era, the majority of the fans cheering in the crowd at both the Semifinals and Games today are still CrossFit athletes themselves, traveling from one of over 12,000 CrossFit affiliates worldwide to share in the celebration of fitness.
“The thing that has always remained constant is the good people,” said Jamie Hagiya. “If you’ve been doing it a while (you know) everyone is (so) kind-hearted. (They’re) here for the right reasons and want everyone to share fitness and (their) experience with everybody.”
Kelsi Peterson during 2024 Semifinal Event 2 | Photo by Charlotte Foerschler
A New Era of the CrossFit Games
After coming off a nostalgic CrossFit Semifinals, 2024 will usher in a new era of the CrossFit Games.
Relocating from Madison, Wisconsin, to Fort Worth, Texas, the final stage of the season will take place at the state-of-the-art Dickies Arena — named by Billboard as the “Top Venue in North America.”
It all starts Aug. 8-11, 2024.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 2024 CROSSFIT GAMES
Cover photo by Johany Jutras