We finally had a return of live elite CrossFit when the Rogue invitational went ahead online with competitors live-streaming workouts from their own gyms, and it was Tia-Clair Toomey and Patrick Vellner who took this year’s titles.
Canada’s Vellner built his victory on the first day of the two-day competition, finishing second in Event 1 before picking up two workout wins.
In the first event of Day 2, the 29-year-old then tied with four other athletes in a clean and jerk liftoff - the weight starting at 290lbs (132kg) and being increased by 10lbs each round. Vellner made it to 350 but was outdone by US Army Captain Chandler Smith and Lukas Hogberg who both set PRs of 360lbs.
Vellner then put in two solid displays to take second and third in the final two workouts, securing victory by a hefty 75 points.
Making up the podium was Icelander Bjorgvin Karl Gudmundsson and Noah Olson of the USA, who both finished level on points but it was the former who took second place due to a victory in Event 4.
In the women’s division, there was no shortage of big names in attendance and it was Games champion Toomey who put herself in a strong position after the first day, taking two event wins.
Toomey certainly made her intentions clear in the opening workout of Day 2 - the clean and jerk liftoff. The Australian surpassed some of the sport’s best lifters in Laura Horvath, Amanda Barnhart, Kara Saunders and Sara Sigmundsdottir to finish first with a lift of 270lbs (122lbs). Toomey had already won before attempting the final weight but elected to take it on anyway.
After claiming second in Event 5, Toomey took a 50-point lead over Sigmundsdottir into the final workout of the competition. Showing her class, the 26-year-old proceeded to crush the rest of the field, taking the event win as the only athlete to break three minutes.
Sigmundsdottir and Saunders took overall second and third respectively while Britain’s Sam Briggs finished 12th.
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