Five Likely Women to Punch their First Ticket to the CrossFit Games in 2023

Although the CrossFit Games field is generally dominated by veterans, every year a certain number of rookie competitors break through and punch their ticket to the biggest stage in the sport. Last year, that number was 15 rookie women, and the year before, 11. As always, this year’s field is a stronghold of athletes who have been there before, but there’s always room for rookies. So who are the most likely women to punch their first ticket to Madison, WI this summer? Here are five women we have been tracking closely, who we think have a great shot at being part of this year’s rookie contingent. This content is available exclusively to Members Become an member and start enjoying full access to all our community and sports content, and an ad-free experience. PROMO Exclusive content Ad-Free web/app experience Comments on articles Exclusive 15% WIT discount $1 per month for the first 4 months, $8 each month after Get Started for $1 Exclusive content Ad-Free web/app experience Comments on articles Exclusive private Facebook Group Regular coffee breaks hang outs Exclusive 15% WIT discount Get Started $5/month billed annually Already a member? Log In. Olivia Kerstetter It’s hard not to paint the reigning 16-17 year-old teen champion Olivia Kerstetter with the same cloth as former teen stars Mal O’Brien, Emma Cary and Emma Lawson, all three of whom made the transition from teen to individual competition look easy. All three, of course, not only qualified for the Games, but became immediate forces against the best in the world in their first year as individuals while still teenagers themselves. Kerstetter, 17 whose training partner is Games veteran Jacob Hopper and now works with PRVN, has had the strength numbers to compete with the best in the world for a while now, and is coming off back-to-back wins in the teen division. She made her individual debut at the Rogue Invitational last fall, placing 16th, and went on to compete at Wodapalooza in Miami, FL in January (14th), helping her feel like she’s ready for the next level. “Even though the results weren’t exactly what I wanted, I proved to myself that I deserve to be there and deserve to compete with the best in the world,” Kerstetter said after the Rogue Invitational. Based on her Quarterfinals showing, Kerstetter heads into Semifinals the ninth best athlete in the North America West and is arguably one of the most obvious picks to be a Games rookie this summer. Anikha Greer Greer’s CrossFit Games quest started in 2018 when she was 15 years old, and has been an ill-fated tale about coming close. The 20-year-old Canadian from Prince Edward Island narrowly missed punching her in both 2018 and 2019, by just one point in 2018, and then qualified to Madison in 2020, but the teen division was canceled due to the pandemic. The following year, Greer, once again, missed qualifying by just one spot when she placed sixth at the Atlas Games. And finally, last year her season was cut short during Quarterfinals due to a video uploading error. This season, Greer has let the past go and said she feels like a new athlete and person. She no longer feels the intense need to prove herself, and is just enjoying training with a new coach (Max El-Hag) and a new training partner (Noah Ohlsen) in Miami. “I still have the same fire and I still want to be the best, but it’s coming from a different, more internally-driven place now,” she said. Considering Greer placed seventh in the world in Quarterfinals and heads into Semifinals as the fourth best athlete in North America East, we think it might just finally be her year. Oihana Moya Spain’s Oihana Moya is another athlete who knows a thing or two about coming close. The 27-year-old has narrowly missed qualifying to the Games for the past two seasons. Both years she went on to compete at the Last Chance Qualifier, where she placed 10th and ninth respectably. Since then, Moya has gained some more all-important competition experience. Known for her weightlifting prowess, she competed at both the Dubai Fitness Championship and Wodapalooza this season, placing fifth and 22nd respectively. Most recently, Moya placed 19th in the world in Quarterfinals, and seventh in Europe, a region where there are 11 Games spots available. Kelly Baker Considering Quarterfinals are arguably the biggest predictor of Semifinals performances, it’s hard to ignore Kelly Baker. Based on Quarterfinals, she heads into Semifinals as the fourth best athlete in North America West, a region with 10 invites to the Games. And although Baker might be somewhat unknown as an individual, the 31-year-old has been competing for a while. In fact, her competition experience dates back to 2016 when she competed on a team at the East Regionals. The following year, she placed seventh at the East Regionals as an individual. Further, Baker has all-important Games experience, having competed on a team in both in 2016 and last summer. Could Baker be the next Arielle Loewen? (Loewen competed as an individual at the South Regional from 2015 until 2018, never qualifying to the Games, and then finally broke through as a more mature, experienced athlete in 2021). Katelin van Zyl Also like Loewen, the 31-year-old Australian Katelin van Zyl has been competing for years—her first regional competition was the Pacific Regional in 2013—gaining valuable CrossFit Games team experience along the way. Now a mother of two, van Zyl is looking stronger than ever, evidenced by her recent 16th place Quarterfinals finish, the best performance from any woman from Oceania. Factor in that the two top Australians—six-time Fittest Woman on Earth Tia-Clair Toomey and 10-time Games athlete Kara Saunders—are both out this season due to being pregnant, and van Zyl looks quite poised to snag one of the three spots from Oceania this season. The big picture: Though only five made our short list, if history predicts the future, more than five new names will find themselves on this summer’s CrossFit Games roster. Just for fun: Other would be rookies who placed in the top 40 at the recent Quarterfinals include Manon Angonese (8th), Claudia Gluck (25th), Sydney Wells (27th), Caroline Stanley (29th) and Allison Weiss (36th), all of whom have to be considered legitimate contenders to punch their tickets this season should the stars align. But, of course, only time will tell how many women rookies this summer’s Games will boast.

Five Likely Women to Punch their First Ticket to the CrossFit Games in 2023

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