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7 Podium Picks Not Named Tia
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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.
In today’s edition:
🥇 Tia's the favorite, but who takes second and third? Check out our women’s division preview.
📈 Rookie Toby Buckland is dialed in for his Games debut.
🔟 She announced it’s her final Games. Why we think it could also be Brooke Wells' best finish ever.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The Games test is different every year. I always have high expectations for myself, but it’s tough to say right now, given the new venue and schedule format.”
CROSSFIT GAMES
Tia and Then Who? The Most Unpredictable Women’s Games Field in Years
Credit: @evillmediasports / Instagram
The women’s race at the 2025 CrossFit Games feels like a mystery waiting to unfold.
After we take Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr out of the equation, that is.
It’s hard to imagine the seven-time Fittest Woman on Earth won’t repeat for the eighth time in Albany, NY. However, after her, only one other woman in the field has finished in the top three before – Arielle Loewen, who was third in 2023 – so the podium seems arguably more wide open than it ever has.
In fact, we believe that one-third of the women’s field has a legitimate chance to finish in the top three.
Who will seize the opportunity is anyone’s guess, but here’s who we're tracking:
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SPEED READS
⚡️🌍 World’s Heaviest Deadlift — 505kg: Hafthor Bjornsson just shattered the all-time deadlift record with a jaw-dropping 505kg (1,113-pound) pull. Watch the lift and dive into how he made history.
🙏🏋️ Lazar Ðukić Memorial Workout: The crew at Training Think Tank posted this workout as a way to honor Ðukić around the anniversary of his death at the 2024 CrossFit Games. Learn about it here and join the leaderboard.
💙🧠 Support for Coach Chris: Co-founder of C4 CrossFit and a pillar of the community for 14 years, Coach Chris Baughman was diagnosed with glioblastoma just days after Murph this year. He’s now in treatment and facing huge medical bills. Learn how to help.
🎯💪 First Ring Muscle-Up: Coach Ben Dziwulski from WODprep breaks down the exact progressions to help you get your first ring muscle-up — with real athletes hitting theirs live. From transition tips to kip fixes, this comprehensive seminar provides a step-by-step blueprint you can apply immediately.
🛠️💪 Grip Strength Meets Raw Power: The axle-bar deadlift will be featured at the 2025 Games in “Event 4,” but check out this article first to learn how this implement builds brute strength, grip dominance, and pulling power. This guide breaks down everything you need to know to master the axle.
ICYMI: 🧪 They test the chaos before anyone else. Meet the 2025 Demo Team.
MEMBER EXCLUSIVE
How Rookie Toby Buckland Is Preparing for his First CrossFit Games
Credit: @ctpcam / Instagram
For most elite CrossFit athletes, qualifying for the CrossFit Games is the product of years of grinding. For Toby Buckland, 2025 has marked a meteoric rise, transforming him from a known name to a Games rookie preparing for the biggest stage of his career.
But qualifying is only the start. With the Games just days away, Buckland has been laser-focused on preparation on training, recovery, nutrition, and mindset. And now, on the eve of the competition, all are finely tuned to make a statement in Albany.
From elite-level coaching to unconventional recovery routines and dialing in nutrition as a type 1 diabetic, Toby is preparing with precision, passion, and purpose.
We caught up with Toby during a training camp in Indiana to get a behind-the-scenes look at how he’s gearing up for his Games debut.
CROSSFIT GAMES
Last One, Best One: Brooke Wells’ 10th and Final Games Run
Credit: @athleteseyephotography / Instagram
Brooke Wells has reached CrossFit Legend status. She is now in the exclusive 10-time Games qualifier club – an extraordinary accomplishment by any standard.
She announced last week that the 2025 CrossFit Games will be her last.
It will not be the last time we see her on a competition floor, however, as the WFP season continues through December. And we hope to see her at the Rogue Invitational in October.
Remind me: Wells began her CrossFit journey at the elite level in 2015, when she won the Central Regional at the age of 19.
Fast-forward a decade. Wells just turned 30 and will arrive in Albany wiser and fitter than ever. She is best known for her raw strength, smooth running stride, and elite-level handstand walking.
Read on to learn why we predict that her final appearance will also be her best finish at the Games.
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HIGHLIGHTS
Celebrating a PR, hosting a fundraiser, this, that, or otherwise? Send us a tip.
🎂Happy birthday to David Tao.
Check out these multiple snatch PRs for Carol from Brazil, ending with 81 kilos/178 pounds.
🍼Congratulations to Gui Malheiros and wife Luciana on the upcoming birth of their baby.
Check out Nick Mathews’ Games prep, less than a week out.
😅Try this burpee-EMOM challenge from Jason Khalipa - can you make it past three minutes?