CrossFit Quarterfinals Report: Britain’s Reggie Fasa Is Fittest In Europe

The first-ever CrossFit Games Quarterfinals have drawn to a close with Reggie Fasa topping the men’s rankings in Europe.

Fasa, a former rugby player with Newcastle Falcons, had the best weekend of his career so far by edging out Sweden’s Simon Mantyla and Finland’s Jonne Koski, who is himself a five-time CrossFit Games athlete.

At 26 years of age, Fasa is having a remarkable season after achieving his first ever top-100 finish in The Open by placing 38th.

He will be joined in the Semifinals by Laura Horvath who was the best of Europe’s women, with a number of big names such as Gabriela Migala, Kristin Holte, Emma McQuaid, Sam Briggs and Katrin Davidsdottir all progressing.

Former CrossFit Games champion Annie Thorisdottir is showing no signs of rustiness after missing last year’s Games for the birth of her first child, making the top 10.

Across the Atlantic it was Travis Mayer who finished the fittest man, just outperforming Scott Panchik and Jeffrey Adler, the top two athlete from The Open.

Mayer was blunt in declaring he has made it his career goal to go on and win the Games.

“There was a goal I had when I first got into this of what I wanted to accomplish, and I don’t think I’m gonna stop until I’m at least there and I know what I’m actually fully capable of,” he said. “You don’t give up until you do what you set out to do. I want to win and that’s what I’m going for.”

Amanda Barnhart came out on top from the North American women’s division, with The Open’s teenage sensation Emma Cary again showing strong form by placing fourth.

Elsewhere, Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr showed her dominance by winning four of the five tests in Oceania, and it’s tough to see the Australian getting beaten at all this season at the moment.

She praised the training set-up and the workout partners she has at her base in Nashville, in particular Brooke Wells who finished fifth in North America.

“Brooke and I have a relationship where we are very competitive with each other but in a healthy way,” Toomey-Orr said. “As much as I want to succeed, I want to push Brooke to succeed as well, and I think that goes vice versa.

“Having that dynamic, that atmosphere, I know that I need to bring it so that I can keep pushing her.

“If she beats me, that just means I need to get that much better and push that much harder, and at the end of the day that’s what I train so hard for. To keep getting pushed to new limits.

“This whole season has started so well, and I’ve kind of found a new love for the sport.”