Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr and Laura Horvath Make History

November 15th, 2024

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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

  • Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr and Laura Horvath battled it out across nine events at the 2024 Rogue Invitational, each taking four consecutive event wins (Toomey-Orr took a fifth win and the top spot on the podium). We break down these historic performances below.

  • We catch up with three CrossFitters who made major physical (and mental) transformations almost five years ago. How are they doing, and where are they at on their fitness journeys?

  • Get to know Australian Adaptive CrossFit Games champ Emily Cairns and learn more about her path from performing as a professional dancer to discovering CrossFit and emerging as a role model in the adaptive community.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“CrossFit is kind of a cheat code to making friends in new places. It has made acclimation to a new area a little easier.” - Sally Salazar-Garnett on the support from her new CrossFit community helped her maintain her health journey and physical transformation.

COMPETITION

Credit: Seb Vallejo, @vallejo_media_ / Instagram

Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr and Laura Horvath Make History at 2024 Rogue Invitational

One of the great storylines from the 2024 Rogue Invitational was the four consecutive event win streaks that both Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr and Laura Horvath put together during the competition. 

Toomey-Orr won the first four, followed by Horvath with a quartet of her own. Toomey-Orr then won the last of the nine events on the weekend and took the top podium spot.

  • This is the second time that Horvath has accomplished this milestone at the Rogue Invitational. 

In 2022, Horvath won Events 3 through 6, becoming the first person to win four events in a row at the Rogue Invitational.

4 in a Row at the Games

The accomplishment of winning four events in a row is even more rare at the CrossFit Games, only happening twice in the competition’s 18-year history. At the 2020 CrossFit Games, Mat Fraser and Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr each won six consecutive events. 

  • This was 2020, however, and with a field size of only five athletes, many fans would put an asterisk next to these records. 

A MESSAGE FROM THE ATHENS THROWDOWN

1 Day to Go – Athens Throwdown Registration Opens Tomorrow!

Only one day left!

Tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. Greek time, registration opens for Athens Throwdown 2025.

Be fast: team spots are limited and sell out within minutes!! 

Team up in 4 divisions and skip the qualifiers:

  • Team Elite Men (2 Males)

  • Team Rx Mix (1 Male, 1 Female)

  • Team Scaled Men (2 Males)

  • Team Scaled Mix (1 Male, 1 Female)

Athens is ready! Are you? 

SPEED READS

🗳️🙋‍♂️Professional Fitness Athletes’ Association Elections: The PFAA is holding its Athlete Board elections this week. Learn about the election and membership processes here.

🩼⛑️ Medical Team Volunteers Needed: The Legends Championship is looking for volunteers for the medical team for the December 12-15 competition in Tempe, AZ.

  • Experience is preferred, but they will train the right people. This is a great opportunity for students pursuing degrees in the healthcare field to gain experience. Contact Stephanie Price, Director of Operations for the 2024 Teenage CrossFit Games and medical team lead for the 1st Phorm Legends Championship.

🥦 🥩 Kara Saunders Announces 1:1 Nutrition Coaching: CrossFit Games legend and captain of the Fittest Team on Earth in 2024, Kara Saunders, has announced her nutrition and lifestyle coaching company, Heaps Good Nutrition, is now offering one-on-one nutrition coaching services. Check it out now.

🏋️🏃PIT Training League: The organizers of the Pit Teen Throwdown announced the creation of a new competition series called the PIT Training League. Learn more and register here.

😎🌴 2024 TYR WZA Miami Beach Tickets Live: TYR Wodapalooza Miami Beach 2025 tickets are officially on sale. Don't miss out on year 13 of the original fitness festival, and celebrate Fitness. Community. Life.

ICYMI: The Belgrade Games kick off this weekend and will honor the life of Serbian CrossFit star Lazar Ðukić.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Courtesy of Resident CrossFit

Consistency Over Perfection: How Three CrossFit Athletes Have Maintained Their Life-Changing Transformations for Five Years and Counting

For many, healthy eating and exercise come and go in their lives as they gain and lose motivation and momentum depending on what else is going on in their lives.

  • They join a gym or start running three days a week, and they sign up for a six-week nutrition challenge, but three months later their life has returned to what it was.

CrossFit is different, they say.

CrossFit is actually fun, so you are actually excited to go to the gym. And you have that all-important community support behind you.

We decided to test this theory with three people we first spoke with nearly five years ago: Dylan Wahlstrom, Isaac Solomon, and Sally Salazar-Garnett, all of whom all experienced life-changing transformations after finding CrossFit.

  • For Salazar-Garnett, 33 at the time, it meant losing 100 pounds, a goal she executed in 2020 during the worldwide pandemic, working out at home when her CrossFit gym closed their doors during the first wave in 2020.

  • For Wahlstrom, it meant losing 100 pounds in seven months after changing his diet and committing to Dawson CrossFit in Dawsonville, GA in 2019.

  • For Solomon, joining CrossFit Reason in Arcadia, CA—and jumping into the gym’s nutrition challenge in March 2020—helped him make some simple diet changes like eating vegetables. And by the end of 2020, he had lost 65 pounds.

So where are they today? Did CrossFit and healthy eating become yet another short-lived fad in their lives, or are Salazar-Garnett, Wahlstrom, and Solomon still embracing healthier lives than the place they found themselves in five years ago?

A MESSAGE FROM SYNERGY

A Space-Saving Home Gym Solution

Struggling with limited space in your home gym? Synergy Custom Fitness’ space-saving, multi-functional, expandable vertical dumbbell racks are the perfect solution.

Available in four sizes with just a 13” footprint, Synergy’s racks fit any collection. They are perfect for home gyms short on space and give you more room for your gear.

Each rack is purpose-built with a 3×3 upright, allowing you to attach accessories like landmines, barbell holders, battle rope anchors, and plate holders, all in one compact space. 

The best part? Their racks can be expanded into a full commercial-grade horizontal rack with their expansion kit while still maintaining the vertical storage on the sides. This is great for when you’re ready to upgrade or move into a bigger space. 

Synergy offers its racks in 11 different color options to match your aesthetic and home gym theme.

CROSSFIT GAMES — ADAPTIVE

Credit: @domos.media / Instagram

From Dancing to CrossFit, Australia’s Emily Cairns Takes Center Stage at the Adaptive CrossFit Games

Recently, the Morning Chalk Up had the opportunity to chat with Australia’s Emily Cairns, the Fittest on Earth in the Women’s Upper 1 Point division. 

  • After narrowly missing out on a qualifying spot at the 2023 Games, Cairns was determined to make an impact in 2024. 

In our interview, the 32-year-old Australian reveals her inspiring journey — from her frustrations as a professional dancer to discovering CrossFit and emerging as a role model in the adaptive community. 

Cairns also shares how transforming her mindset around her disability empowered her to embrace her body and all the amazing things she can do. 

  • Remind Me: WheelWOD took over the Adaptive CrossFit season this year, culminating in the 2024 Adaptive CrossFit Games, which were held in San Antonio, TX, on Sept. 19. Here, CrossFit’s best adaptive athletes competed for the Fittest on Earth title across 15 adaptive divisions. 

Note: These questions and answers have been lightly edited for clarity and flow.

Morning Chalk Up: Congrats on your Fittest on Earth title. Has it sunk in yet?

Emily Cairns: I’ve worn my medal every day. 

MCU: Was this your first CrossFit Games?

EC: Yes. Last year, I missed out by one place; I finished sixth. I honestly think it’s the worst place to finish. I think I would have rather been 10th. After that, I was definitely like, “Right, I need to get stronger, and I need to get better for next year.”

HIGHLIGHTS

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