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🎟️ Harry Lightfoot Is One Step Away From His Third Games Ticket

May 14th, 2026

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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

  • 🎟️ A CrossFit Games ticket within reach — Harry Lightfoot enters Semifinals in peak form, with confidence (and pressure) building.

  • 🇫🇷 Six more tickets on the line. The French Throwdown is Europe’s first shot at the CrossFit Games.

  • 🧠 The biggest mistake gym owners make? Thinking too small.

QUOTE OF THE DAY
❝

The idea was: we're gonna take a jump, and try to make the Games…And now, the goalpost has just kept moving. To then have these dream collaborations, it’s just a bonus.”

Harry Lightfoot, CrossFit Games veteran, on the last three seasons.
PROFILE

Eyes on the Games, Ticket in Sight: Harry Lightfoot Takes On The French Throwdown

Credit: Scott Freymond

In Harry Lightfoot’s words, “The last nine months for me have been (not to sound too cliché), life-changing. It’s been unbelievable.” 

And he’s not wrong. Over the past year, the two-time CrossFit Games athlete and fan favorite has signed with two of the biggest brands, not only in our sport but in any sport: Adidas and Red Bull. Heading into this season, with this massive dose of support, “it’s like a dream – every day is an honor,” Lightfoot told Morning Chalk Up.

Some Background 

While Lightfoot’s relationships with Adidas and Red Bull are new, he’s not new to the competitive fitness scene. He’s competed at Quarterfinals since 2021 and at Semifinals since 2023. 

  • In 2024, his rookie year at the CrossFit Games, he finished 21st. The next year, he climbed the leaderboard and finished 11th, the highest finish for a European male that year. 

In the time he’s spent competing at the top, he’s gained valuable self-knowledge.

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SPEED READS

🎟️🔥 Games Tickets Are Live: The 2026 CrossFit Games tickets are now available to the public — with the action heading to San Jose this July.

🎙️📱 Your Doctor Has Competition: More Americans are getting health advice from influencers and podcasters instead of medical professionals. Fitness, nutrition, recovery, and longevity content are increasingly shaping how people think about health

🎖️🇺🇸 The Story Behind “Murph”: Murph has become one of CrossFit’s most meaningful Memorial Day traditions, and it honors Navy SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2005.

🍩🧠 Your Appetite Isn’t Broken — It’s Being Hijacked: CrossFit’s latest deep dive explores why ultra-processed foods make overeating so easy.

ICYMI: Building More Than a Competition: Chelsey Hughes’ Vision for XENOM (Rx article)

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

2026 French Throwdown: Preview and Who to Watch

Credit: Lydia Stadtheower

We are approaching our fourth (non-consecutive) weekend of CrossFit Semifinals, with the French Throwdown kicking off Friday through Sunday – the Semifinal to be held in Europe this season. 

  • At the end of the competition, six more individuals will have secured their spot on the CrossFit Games roster. 

With the geofencing rules amended this year, athletes have been able to compete for Games qualification at any Semifinal event, provided they finished in the top 200 in Quarterfinals.

So far, we’ve seen athletes take on multiple events, and in some cases, on back-to-back weekends, to secure their spot on the Games roster. Each Semifinal this season advances only one to three men and women to the Games, resulting in intense competition and high-stakes outcomes. 

Let’s take a look at who’s competing.

INDUSTRY

The Biggest Mistake Most Gym Owners Make (It’s Not What You Think)

Credit: Gym Business Coach

For many gym owners in the CrossFit and functional fitness space, success still looks like survival: keep members happy, pay the bills, and maybe take a weekend off once in a while if you’re lucky.

It’s not what most gym owners had in mind when they opened their businesses, but it’s the reality many face.

For Tim Lyons, the founder of Gym Business Coach, the biggest thing they’re missing is the right mindset.

  • “Most gym owners don’t believe they can do bigger numbers,” Lyons told The Morning Chalk Up. “A lot of gym owners get really comfortable just kind of making a little bit of money. And I think that’s a big mistake.”

The belief that gyms can become scalable businesses rather than owner-dependent jobs has become the driving force behind Lyons’ gym business coaching company, and it will be one of the main topics they tackle at their upcoming Growth Summit on June 25-27 in Scottsdale, AZ. (For $100 off a VIP ticket, use the discount code “MCU”).

HIGHLIGHTS

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