These Athletes Are "Out" for the Open

February 18th, 2025

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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

  • A number of CrossFit Games athletes announced that they would not participate in the 2025 season over the past few weeks. Get caught up and see the list below.

  • Training through the cold, dry winter months can do a number on our skin. Tracy Tucker from Training Think Tank has some nutrition tips that can help repair the damage.

  • CrossFit New England, an iconic box outside Boston, MA, has announced its de-affiliation from the brand. Ben Bergeron (CF-L4) provides an open letter explaining the decision.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Silence doesn’t drive change – action does. That’s why I won’t be competing in the 2025 CrossFit Games season.” - Jelle Hoste, two-time CrossFit Games athlete, via Instagram.

CROSSFIT GAMES

Credit: Scott Freymond

Who Is Skipping the 2025 CrossFit Open? All the Athletes We Know So Far

As we get closer to the CrossFit Open Workout 25.1 announcement, the competitive landscape has continued to shift in significant ways.

While some athletes have posted advertisements for the Open (labeled #ad and/or #sponsored, and collabed with CrossFit and the CrossFit Games), others have begun to publicly declare their intention to sit out of the 2025 CrossFit Games season. Instead, they are choosing to focus on other competitive fitness events, including the World Fitness Project, the Rogue Invitational, TYR Wodapalooza, and HYROX.

Here’s a list of the athletes who are skipping the 2025 CrossFit Open so far:

  • Annie Thorisdottir

  • Elisa Fuliano

  • Patrick Vellner

  • Emma Tall

  • Emma McQuaid

  • Luka Ðukić

  • Chandler Smith

  • Jelle Hoste

This list will be updated as athletes make public statements. It will not include athletes who were otherwise planning to do the Games season but dropped out due to injury or other circumstances.

  • Worth noting: The athletes on this list have a combined 42 Games appearances, 33 Games event wins, 11 Games podium finishes, and two Games championships.

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SPEED READS

🏋️🎟️ World Fitness Project Spectator Tickets: Want to attend the inaugural World Fitness Tour Event? Spectator tickets are available now (Weekend Admission, $100; Single Day Admission, $50; and Weekend VIP, $500) for the Indianapolis, IN, event on May 9-11. Get them here.

🎥📺 Brute UNSCRIPTED: Last week Brute Strength launched a new YouTue series, UNSCRIPTED, a behind-the-scenes look at Brute athletes. The first episode is live now and features 2024 Crossfit Games champ, James Sprague.

🚨🌟CrossFit Open 25.2 Live Announcement: Last week, CrossFit announced that the Open 25.2 live announcement will take place in Arizona on March 6 at noon PT and feature Emily Rolfe and Sydney Wells. Get the details here.

🌎 🎟️ 2025 Qualifying Event Updates: Here are a few quick updates from some of the 2025 CrossFit Games Qualifying Events. 

  • TFX Invitational: Not sure if you’re eligible to compete at the TFX Invitational? Organizers released this infographic explainer.

  • Syndicate Crown: Spectator tickets (wave 1 pricing) are on sale now for the Knoxville, TN Qualifying Event, taking place May 30-June 1. Learn more here.

  • Far East Throwdown: General tickets are available now for the Busan, Korea Qualifying Event, taking place from May 30 to June 1. 

🚨🚨 The CrossFit Open Is Coming: The 2025 CrossFit Open will take place from February 27 to March 17, so sign up now!

  • Bundle and save on 2025 CrossFit Open shirts and Judges course registration here.

ICYMI: Pat Vellner, the nine-time CrossFit Games athlete and five-time medalist, announced last week that he would sit out of the 2025 CrossFit Games season. Get the details here.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Credit: Micheile Henderson / Unsplash

How Nutrition Can Help Repair Your Post-Winter-Training Skin – 10 Foods to Boost Your Skin Health

As winter fades and spring approaches, our skin often needs a little extra care to recover from the harsh, dry conditions of training in (usually) poorly heated gyms during the colder months. 

  • The combination of cold air, indoor heating, and reduced moisture can leave the skin feeling dry, dull, and dehydrated. 

Thankfully, with the right nutrients, you can restore your skin’s natural glow and give it the radiance it deserves. After all, we train in the gym not only for longevity and health but also to look good! 

  • In this article, I discuss ten powerhouse foods that nourish the skin from the inside out, providing the vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants essential for a rejuvenated complexion. 

Whether you’re battling dryness, dullness, or fine lines, these foods will help bring your skin back to life, naturally enhancing its radiance.

COMMUNITY

Credit: @benbergeron / Instagram

Why We Are De-Affiliating: CrossFit New England

Editor’s Note: Several weeks ago, Ben Bergeron (CF-L4) announced to his CrossFit New England community that his gym, CFNE, would be de-affiliating from CrossFit. CFNE was established in 2007 and has trained thousands of athletes, including CrossFit Games Affiliate Cup champs and legends like Mat Fraser, Katrin Davidsdottir, Cole Sager, and Brooke Wells, among many others. Below, Bergeron provides an open letter to the broader community about what drove this decision. For more, Ben and Patrick Cummings discussed this decision on the Chasing Excellence Podcast.   

—

To the Community,

This is one of the hardest letters I’ve ever had to write. After nearly two decades, CrossFit New England will be de-affiliating from CrossFit.

This decision wasn’t made lightly. It comes after six months of deep reflection, conversations, and wrestling with what’s best for our gym and our community. And while I know in my heart that this is the right path forward, I also feel an incredible weight in saying goodbye to something that has meant so much to me for so long.

I owe so much to CrossFit. It shaped my career, my coaching, my friendships, and my family. It introduced me to some of the best people I’ve ever known. It redefined and revolutionized fitness, and for that, I’ll always be grateful. But at the same time, we’ve reached a point where our values no longer fully align with CrossFit HQ.

At CFNE, we believe in humility, honesty, and responsibility. Since the tragic events of last year's Games, it has become harder and harder to reconcile these principles with the decisions and lack of accountability, ownership, and transparency shown by CrossFit HQ. 

I am not excited about this decision, and I am not making it emotionally or quickly. I’ve spent the last six months contemplating the right path forward, as I  believe that leadership means making the right decision, even when it’s the hard one; and this is hard.

HIGHLIGHTS

Celebrating a PR, hosting a fundraiser, this, that, or otherwise? Send us a tip.

CrossFit Lowell in Lowell, MA, came together last weekend to raise money for Coach Emily, who is battling brain cancer. Learn more and donate to her fundraiser by visiting her GoFundMe.