The CrossFit Games have crowned their female champion: Tanya Wagner of Pennsylvania, who finished second in last year's Games.
The theme of this year's games was "Unknown and Unknowable," and Annie Thorisdottir from Iceland certainly provided the unknown element. After two months of CrossFit training, the 19-year-old emerged as the only competitor with a chance to wrest to overall title away from Wagner in the final WOD:
15 barbells cleans (100 lb.)
30 toes to bar
30 box jumps (20 inches)
10 muscle-ups
30 push presses (25)
30 double-unders
15 thrusters (95)
30 pull-ups
30 burpees
Overhead walking lunges (25)
But could Thorisdottir do muscle-ups?
After the final WOD was announced, CrossFit Director of Training Nicole Carroll was teaching Thorisdottir how to perform the movement in the warm-up area. Thorisdottir is a phenomenal athlete, but no one knew if she could get 10 muscle-ups during the WOD.
It turned out she could get a muscle-up--but only one. The crowd roared as she struggled through it, but the teen could go no further than that.
"It felt great," she said of doing her first muscle-up mere hours after being taught the movement. "I thought I would be able to do nine more."
Mist vowed that she would head back to the gym and learn the movement immediately.
Wagner had difficulty on the muscle-ups but finished nonetheless, completing the rest of the WOD in 29:34.4 and claiming the overall title with a consistent performance across the board. All told, Wagner only finished out of the top 10 in one event, proving she is truly the master of all 10 CrossFit fitness domains.
"This is a dream," Wagner said. "Last year was so awesome, but it was a different feeling than it is this year. This year is just awesome."
She added:
"I hate going into something being first. I hate that. I like to catch up. So it's just fun to know that I was able to hold on to that. You don't even know. From workout two and three today, beforehand I (didn't think) there was any way I was getting through either one of them. I'm just so happy!"
Charity Vale, who finished the WOD in a brilliant 18:24, finished second, and Carey Kepler was third.
Wagner's overall performance:
WOD 1: 11th
WOD 2: 6th
WOD 3: 8th
WOD 4: 9th
WOD 5: 5th
WOD 6: 2nd
WOD 7: 6th
WOD 8: 7th
31 comments on this entry.
1. JO wrote...
July 12, 2009 8:10 PM
Incredible performances, congrats!!!
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2. Nate wrote...
July 12, 2009 8:16 PM
Great Job everyone who competed.
Big congrats to Lindsey and Vic, Houston is proud!
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3. Mike Cappi wrote...
July 12, 2009 8:17 PM
Congratulations Tanya!!! you are inspiration to everyone you train at APEX!!!!
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4. Jason Ackerman - Albany CrossFit wrote...
July 12, 2009 8:26 PM
Great job Tanya, congrats! Way to represent the East Coast!
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5. Olivia wrote...
July 12, 2009 8:33 PM
Awesome, inspiring... well done & well deserved.
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6. seth wrote...
July 12, 2009 8:44 PM
A well deserved victory. Tanya is a beast. And Annie . . . never done a muscle up . . . two months of crossfit . . . 19? Wow. I'm trying to imagine her with 12 months of prep.
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7. RhabdoGFCM wrote...
July 12, 2009 9:19 PM
Congrats!! How heavy is that hammer? I want to lever it.
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8. neile wrote...
July 12, 2009 9:48 PM
Congratulations to Tanya, Charity and Carey!! Charity, your performance on the last WOD left us all with our mouths hanging open. It was an all around amazing performance!
Sarah Dunsmore -- I have never screamed louder for anyone! The way you fought for every one of those muscle ups! The way you stayed tough and finished the WOD with seconds to spare was one of the toughest things I've seen. Congratulations to you for an AWESOME performance all weekend!!! You were absolutely incredible!
Great weekend all around!!!
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9. Kevin W wrote...
July 13, 2009 1:27 AM
Congratulations Tanya!
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10. Tyler wrote...
July 13, 2009 5:18 AM
Congratulations Tanya!
Excellent work all weekend!
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11. Eileen Banis wrote...
July 13, 2009 6:09 AM
Great job Tanya - so glad to have met you in Pa...Aimee Lyons' Momi
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12. Greg Tutunjian wrote...
July 13, 2009 9:03 AM
Awesome work Tanya, and Congratulations!
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13. josh everett wrote...
July 13, 2009 9:38 AM
Tayna... WOW that level of performance over a 2 year span is the stuff legends are made of. I finally got to meet you this weekend Tayna and everybody listen when I tell you she is just as nice of a person as she is fit.
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14. Tanya Wagner wrote...
July 13, 2009 12:58 PM
What an amazing weekend and awesome community! I feel so fortunate and blessed to be a part of such a wonderful group of athletes and people. Thanks you for all the nice comments and kind words. Getting to meet and talk to so many amazing athletes and fellow crossfitters was the most fun part of the whole weekend. Congratulations Charity, Carey, Mikko, Tommy, Moe, and to all the athletes this weekend...we didn't die! :)
I had so much fun meeting and competing with such an amazing group of women. I'm so proud of our East Coast girls, Christy, Maggie, Nicole, Heather, Danielle, Sarah!!! You girls rock! I love you guys. Molly, I'm so happy you were there this weekend...it just made me feel like home :) Thanks!!! To Mary and all my new Texas friends, thank you for your cheers and kindness. Lindsey, my fellow goalkeeper, it was so great to meet you and I can't wait to see you again. You are so cool and thank you for pushing me in that final chipper!
Dave, Tony, Jamie, Nicole, Coach, Lauren and everyone else at HQ, thank you for all your hard work in putting together this weekend and making it yet another well run, organized, spectacular event. To all of the volunteers and judges, thank you for all your hard work all weekend long.
Mike, Keith, and my athletes back home at CrossFit Apex THANK YOU ALL! I love you guys and can't express to you my thanks for all your love and endless support. You have no idea how many times I thought of each and everyone of you and how much your enthusiasm and energy helped me mentally through the weekend. Thanks and I can't wait to see you when I get home :) Angie, you're so cute...thanks for sweet words and all the tears...you're just like Mom!
To my friends Sevan, Carey, and Hayley...you guys rock! Thanks for all the hugs and for believing in me.
To CFDV, CFTexas, CFKOP, CFOCMD, all the great people I met at the Ranch, and to anyone I may have missed thank you for your support all weekend long.
Mom and Dad, I'm so happy you could be at the Games this weekend. It means so much to me to have you there to share in all the excitement. (even if it was too hard for you watch Elaine)
And to my wonderful husband Josh, I'm so proud of you this weekend, you worked so hard and did a great job! I'm so proud of you. I couldn't have gotten though this weekend without you. You told me I could do it all along and believed in me more than anyone. Thanks baby I love you and I also love CrossFit!!!
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15. silverback wrote...
July 13, 2009 1:24 PM
We were there pulling for you Tanya! Enjoy the sweet victory. Totally awesome.
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16. carey wrote...
July 13, 2009 2:11 PM
Tanya you are amazing and it was an honor to workout with you! Great work and congratulations!
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17. Eli wrote...
July 13, 2009 4:09 PM
Tanya,
Congratulations! You're awesome.
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18. carey wrote...
July 13, 2009 6:13 PM
Tanya. YOU rock!!! Congratulations on a well deserved victory. It was a wild and emotional ride watching you get through a seriously tough Games this year, but the ending couldn't be sweeter. We gonna hang while you guys are out in Cali??
Congrats to all the top placing athletes! It was no joke getting to where you got.
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19. cleverhandz wrote...
July 13, 2009 6:17 PM
Tanya, congratulations to you shero! You earned it and moreover owned it!
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20. Kim Malz~FitMom wrote...
July 13, 2009 7:36 PM
Tanya,
It was a pleasure to meet you and talk with you in the barn (with your last year's judge Evan). You are a fierce competitor with a lot of class! It is clearly evident that you have FUN with CrossFit while training hard as well.
Best wishes for a great school year coming up~what a role model to your students!
Best,
Kim Malz
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21. trace wrote...
July 13, 2009 9:59 PM
Could someone explain to me the scoring for 3rd place since the 4th place finisher had 75 pts too
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22. trace wrote...
July 13, 2009 10:00 PM
Could someone explain to me the scoring for 3rd place since the 4th place finisher had 75 pts too
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23. Sevan wrote...
July 13, 2009 10:16 PM
2nd place in 08 and first place in 09 -
These were 2 very different events and Tanya crushed both of them!
Tanya Wagner has set the bar high
Very HIGH!
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24. Sarah Dunsmore wrote...
July 14, 2009 7:28 AM
After everything I experience and witnessed this weekend, I can say without a doubt that Tanya Wagner is a beast! What an amazing, talented, all-around CrossFitter. I found myself in a few conversations with Tanya on Sunday about her apprehension with certain movements or her nervousness about specific weaknesses before a WOD would start. Then I would see her compete and think, "Weaknesses? Those weren't weaknesses!" It is no surprise that the fittest woman on earth can perform exceptionally, even within her weaknesses. I am proud to have been a part of a competition with her.
Tanya, it was a pleasure to have competed with you and gotten to know you! You absolutely deserve this distinction. Way to take it home this weekend!
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25. Christy Phillips wrote...
July 14, 2009 8:37 AM
Congratulations Tanya!!! You OWNED it this weekend! Your level of physical and mental toughness amazes me. What an inspiration!
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26. Reno_Ty wrote...
July 14, 2009 9:14 AM
Tanya,
You are amazing! You are so well-rounded, you deserve all the accolades that come with being the CF Games champion. For a "Beast", you did fantastic on the run. You were strong as hell on the dead-lift, had fantastic coordination, balance and technique on the max-effort snatch, and had the mental edge to keep it together on the met-cons. And you did it all while maintaining a great attitude! As my kids get older, I'm glad there are TRUE champions out there like you that I can point to and say, "Kids, that's what a real champion looks like!".
Thanks for inspiring me and my family to constantly become better athletes and better people. Between you, Jason Khalipa, and Mikko Salo, I think there may be hope for the human condition after all! I hope you kill it next year at the games. You don't seem to have any chinks in your armor, but after two years of domination at the games, you also don't have anything left to prove. At this point, when and if there is a CrossFit Hall of Fame, you'll certainly be one of the first to be accepted.
Congratulations!!
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27. Aimee Lyons wrote...
July 14, 2009 9:53 AM
Tanya- Congratulations on an absolutely amazing performance-ALL weekend long! It was an honor to be there and cheer you on in person, way to represent the East Coast!! To all the other amazing athletes your desire and determination, both mentally and physically was inspiring.
And to the whole CrossFit community, way to put on an A-Class event, from the judges, volunteers, spectators and especially Castro and Budding...you guys deserve a ton of credit! Awesome job! Looking at the pics and vids can't really compare what it felt like to be there in person!
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28. Jennifer Kellams wrote...
July 14, 2009 10:43 AM
Congratulation, Tanya, and to all the other female competitors that took part over the weekend. What an amazing event! Very inspring.
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29. Lindsey Smith wrote...
July 15, 2009 7:46 AM
Hey Tanya,
Congrats again on everything. You are truly a stud. It was so great getting to know you, my fellow goalkeeper. I would love to hang out when you come to Texas, so you will have to keep me posted. It was such an honor to compete along side of you. It was surely my pleasure to push you along in that last WOD, despite those forsaken muscle-ups! You embody every quality a CrossFit woman should possess, and the strongest of character to compliment your athletic ability!
God bless and I look forward to keeping in touch.
Lindsey
PS - My husband and I keep a blog that you might be interested in checking out
www.wearecrossfit.blogspot.com
Again, CONGRATS!
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30. Tia McDougall wrote...
July 15, 2009 8:23 AM
Tanya that was an absolutely amazing performance. It was an absolute honour to have been able to be amoungst all of you. Well done-seriously that was AMAZING.
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31. Howard L. wrote...
July 15, 2009 9:56 AM
Tanya,
You are a REAL class act and wonderful person to be around, your humility is uncanny. You and your family are amzingly personable, and if anyone deserves to be crowned the "fittest woman in the world" it is you- for possessing both the physical and social capabilities; by proving that you don't have to sell your soul just to be number one.
Congratulations again to you and Josh on that AMAZING performance through the grueling weekend.
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