The Sport of Fitness Podcast

In this episode, Saxon Panchik, Justin Medeiros, Laura Horvath, and Emma Lawson join Chase Ingraham after each pair went head-to-head in Open Workout 22.2 live at Rogue Fitness in Columbus, Ohio.

The four Games athletes describe their experiences being the first to take on 22.2 live, share their best advice for a smooth workout, and answer questions from live viewers, while enjoying post-WOD cookies to celebrate Medeiros’ birthday.

The 2022 NOBULL CrossFit Games season kicked off with the live announcement of CrossFit Open Workout 22.1 in Boulder, Colorado. Games perennials Pat Vellner and Noah Ohlsen, and Bethany Shadburne and Danielle Brandon went head-to-head and set the scores to beat.

In this episode, Vellner, Ohlsen, Shadburne, and Brandon join host Chase Ingraham after the live announcement to talk about their experience with the event, tips and tricks for a successful Open workout, and their preparations for the 2022 season.

CrossFit Competition Director Adrian Bozman and host Chase Ingraham detail all stages of the 2022 Games season for individual athletes.

Individual athletes will follow a similar road to the Games as they did last year, starting with the CrossFit Open.

The top 10% of athletes from each continental region in the Open will advance to Quarterfinals. The top 120 in North America, 60 in Europe, and 30 in Oceania, Africa, Asia, and South America will move on to Semifinals.

The top one to five men and women, depending on the Semifinal, will earn their ticket to compete at the Games — now a five-day competition beginning Wednesday, Aug. 3, and concluding Sunday, Aug. 7.

Similar to last year, Semifinals athletes on the cusp will have an opportunity to compete in the Last-Chance Qualifier, a virtual competition that will send its top two men and women to the finals in Madison.

In addition to breaking down the season in detail, Bozman discusses the goal of programming at each stage of competition, athlete seeding for Semifinals, and the purpose of the Last-Chance Qualifier.

CrossFit Competition Director Adrian Bozman joins host Chase Ingraham to discuss who is eligible to compete in the 2022 CrossFit Occupational Games.

The CrossFit Open is searching for the fittest in the following fields: active-duty military, military veterans, law-enforcement officers, firefighters, first responders, medical professionals, educators, and college students.

During Open registration, participants who fall into one of those categories can select their occupation. The top 10% of athletes in each category from the Open will be invited to compete in the online Occupational Games, taking place April 21-24. The top athlete in each category will be crowned the fittest in their field.

In this episode, Bozman explains how Occupational Games athletes are still eligible to compete in other divisions (ex. individual and age group) and also gives examples of which professions fall into each occupational category.

“It’s really important that we highlight how important the affiliate is to everything we do, and that should transcend whether that’s having the average person show up and have a life-changing experience due to the coaching that they’re going to receive all the way down to how it reflects in the competition.” —Adrian Bozman

Host Chase Ingraham and CrossFit Competition Director Adrian Bozman outline the 2022 Games season for athletes preparing for the Affiliate Cup competition at the 2022 Games Finals.

To compete in the Affiliate Cup, athletes must first register for the Open as an individual. A member of the affiliate — who is then designated as the team captain — will then register the affiliate team. The team captain can add members to the team and/or members can join the team themselves.

After the Open, the top 25% of teams from each continental region with a minimum of 50 teams will advance to the Quarterfinals. The top 80 teams in North America, 40 teams in Europe, and 20 teams in Africa, South America, Asia, and Oceania will advance to Semifinals.

The top one to five teams, depending on the Semifinal, will advance to the CrossFit Games Finals in Madison.

In this episode, Bozman gives an in-depth breakdown of which athletes are eligible to compete in the Affiliate Cup, what steps they and their teammates need to take to advance, and how teams will submit scores.

Bozman also confirms that team athletes can expect to see variations in workouts across divisions and more of an emphasis on teamsmanship during the Quarterfinals stage.

Learn more about competing in the team division.

"The masters divisions, in my opinion, are some of the most inspiring … . It's awesome to see that you can pursue this long term, and not just as an outlet to be competitive and have fun … but to see the tangible benefit that it has on your health and your ability to live your life." — Adrian Bozman

Host Chase Ingraham and CrossFit Games Competition Director Adrian Bozman outline the 2022 NOBULL CrossFit Games season for the masters divisions.

This year, masters athletes will follow a similar path to the Games as the individual and team divisions.

Top athletes will advance through the Open, Quarterfinals, and Semifinals before qualifying for the CrossFit Games.

Bozman details how many athletes will progress from one stage to the next and reviews dates for each stage of competition.

Bozman also clarifies a change in division selection for the 2022 season. He explains how athletes will not be allowed to compete in multiple divisions to qualify for the CrossFit Games, requiring them to choose a division before the Semifinals stage.

Host Chase Ingraham and CrossFit Games Competition Director Adrian Bozman map out and explain the 2022 NOBULL CrossFit Games season for the teen divisions.

"It's like looking into the future. I see athletes that are coming up through (the teen) divisions and I think to myself, 'Okay, in a couple of years, I'm going to be seeing them on the big stage if they choose to keep it up.' So, that's pretty cool and pretty exciting to get a window into the future of the sport." — Adrian Bozman

The road to the Games for athletes in the teen 14-15 and 16-17 divisions will closely mirror the individuals and the teams.

The top 10% of athletes from the Open in the two teen divisions will advance to Quarterfinals, and then the top 30 from Quarterfinals will advance to Semifinals. From there, the top 10 athletes from the online Semifinals stage — taking place May 26-29 — will be invited to compete at the 2022 NOBULL CrossFit Games in August.

Although age group athletes may compete in the individual and/or team divisions, they will need to declare a division to pursue a ticket to the Games prior to the Semifinals stage.

CrossFit Games Competition Director Adrian Bozman joins host Chase Ingraham on the podcast to break down the 2022 NOBULL CrossFit Games season for the adaptive division which will include a new, online Semifinals stage.

"There's a lot of passion within the adaptive athlete contingency, and I think that's great … . I know that not everybody is going to agree all the time, and I don't expect that, but I do appreciate that people are so invested in this thing that they're willing to speak out … . We hear that … and we do take all these into consideration, and it's our hope that we can continue to push toward something that everybody wants to be a part of. We hear you guys, we love the enthusiasm, we love the passion, and we're working. We're working for you." — Adrian Bozman

CrossFit Games Competition Director Adrian Bozman joins host Chase Ingraham on the podcast to break down the 2022 NOBULL CrossFit Games season for the adaptive division which will include a new, online Semifinals stage.

In this episode, Bozman shares how the 2022 season was structured — with the help of feedback from the adaptive community and lessons learned from 2021 — and also explains how adaptive athletes will be crowned the fittest in their divisions.

Bozman also provides insight on the expansion of the adaptive division within CrossFit competition.

New General Manager of Sport Justin Bergh joins Chase Ingraham on the podcast to discuss the CrossFit season structure, recent changes to the company, and the vision for the future of CrossFit.

Bergh took on the role of General Manager of Sport in early January 2022 after Dave Castro was dismissed from his position. Bergh highlights Castro’s responsibilities within CrossFit over the years, including his involvement with the Seminar Staff, the CrossFit Games, and other areas of the company.

Despite internal changes that have taken place, the main focus for 2022 will be to listen, to communicate, and to provide consistency for the community.

The CrossFit Games season structure will remain consistent for this year, and it all starts with the Open.

(Minute 13ish) “(The Open) unlocks more opportunities to invest back into the sport and bring things to our fans, and tell athlete stories and tell CrossFit stories in a way that supports the overall mission,” Bergh says, explaining the importance of the Open for the community and the growth of CrossFit.

As far as using Castro’s programming for the Open workouts, Bergh says, “We’ll talk about that soon,” affirming more information will become available through the CrossFit channels.

Minute 44:17: “The discussion around programming,” Bergh says, “is one where I think if we’re doing a good job, (we’re) walking people into the programming conversation, not just telling them the decision we made.”

Long-standing Seminar Staff member and Flowmaster Adrian Bozman will head the programming department.

Looking ahead to the future of the CrossFit Games and sharing more stories from the community, Bergh says, “I think that we can really use our sport for greater benefit than maybe anybody else has ever used sport before.”

Although a select few get to participate at the Games, which have become a source of inspiration for many, Bergh says, “It starts at an affiliate.”

“Regardless of where people are in their athlete journey or their levels, we want this to be a sport that they feel like they can learn and play.”

Learn about Bergh’s CrossFit beginnings, the impact that staff members such as Johnny Mac and Heather Lawrence have had on the sport, and how CrossFit will continue to move forward.

The 2022 Wodapalooza Fitness Festival was an event to remember.

Host Chase Ingraham, reporter Niki Brazier, and former Games athlete Adrian Conway highlight the final day of competition, recapping all the action from the weekend and breaking down the final leaderboards. The trio also share their favorite takeaways and moments from the competition.

Miss the athletes in action? Watch livestreams of Wodapalooza on the CrossFit Games YouTube channel or head to games.crossfit.com.