The reigning champions notched the world's top scores on Open Workout 14.4.
The reigning CrossFit Games champions Rich Froning Jr. and Samantha Briggs notched the world’s top scores on Open Workout 14.4 and earned the fourth of five weekly cash prizes. Each athlete will be awarded US$2,014.
After programming couplets for the first three weeks of the 2014 Reebok CrossFit Games Open, Dave Castro tossed in a chipper for 14.4.
14.4
As many reps as possible in 14 minutes of:
60-calorie row
50 toes-to-bars
40 wall-ball shots (20 lb. / 14 lb.)
30 cleans (135 lb. / 95 lb.)
20 muscle-ups
Like in all chippers, athletes had to complete the work prescribed for the first movement before advancing to the second movement, and so on. If an athlete completed the work prescribed for all five movements within the 14-minute time cap, he or she could start it over again. (Read the full description of the workout and standards here.)
On Thursday night, Josh Bridges and Scott Panchik showed it was possible to reach the second round. Bridges completed his last muscle-up in 11:38 and got back on the rower. Panchik finished his last muscle-up 24 seconds later and joined Bridges. Over the next couple minutes, Bridges racked up 44 calories on the row while Panchik notched 35.
Within hours, athletes from around the world posted scores that beat Bridges and Panchik. One of those athletes was Briggs.
Like in past weeks, Briggs was quick to do the Open workout and post her result. On Friday, she topped the worldwide Leaderboard with one complete round plus 49 calories on the row (249 reps).
Unsatisfied, she tried it again.
“14.4.2 just to see if those second set of (toes-to-bars) were possible #farworsethe2ndtime,” Briggs wrote on Instagram on Sunday morning.
On her second attempt, Briggs came four calories away from getting off the rower. With 256 reps she again posted the best female performance on 14.4. No woman had challenged her first score, and no woman would. With her re-do, Briggs beat her main challenger: herself.
Briggs wanted to know if the second set of toes-to-bars were possible, and four men proved that they were.
Rich Froning, Ben Smith, Rob Forte and James Hobart managed to complete one full round, 60 calories on the second row, and one or more toes-to-bars within the time cap.
Hobart completed one toes-to-bar, Forte got three, Smith got five, and Froning got 17 within the 14-minute time cap. With a score of 277 reps, Froning set the world's best score for a male athlete on 14.4.
For the first time in the 2014 Open, men set the world’s top scores on the week’s workout. Also for the first time this year, Froning set the world’s top score on the week’s workout. With fourth-, second- and eighth-place finishes worldwide on 14.1, 14.2 and 14.3, respectively, Froning has held the overall lead without winning a single Open workout until now.
Watch the 14.4 World Record Performances:
With four of the five Open workouts in the books, the end is coming fast. Castro will announce the final workout from the 4,000-seat Kezar Pavillion in San Francisco, Calif. Moments later, five CrossFit Games champions will set the scores to beat.
Froning (2011, 2012, 2013) will take on Jason Khalipa (2008) and Graham Holmberg (2010), and Briggs (2013) will face her predecessor, two-time champion Annie Thorisdottir (2011, 2012).
Fans will be able to stream the entire event on Games.CrossFit.com or watch from the stands in San Francisco.
It will all go down at 5 p.m. PT on Thursday, March 27. Tickets to the 4,000-seat venue cost $20 and are on sale now.
Get your tickets to the live announcement of 14.5 here.
