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A CrossFit Christmas Special: Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr, Brooke Wells, and More Share Their Favorite Holiday Movies

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The holiday season is in full swing, and with that comes one of our favorite traditions: the Christmas movies.

While many of us have tried-and-true staples that we watch every year, others have some rather, let’s say, unique choices that are part of their annual Christmas-viewing habits.

We wanted to know what some of the best CrossFit athletes in the world are watching this time of year, so we reached out to get some answers. Here’s what we found.

Beginning With the Classics

First off, Elf, starring Will Ferrell, was an overwhelmingly popular choice among the athletes we polled.

Emma Lawson: “I watch Elf every year. My all-time favorite Christmas movie.”

Tia Clair Toomey-Orr agreed with Lawson, saying, “Oh man, this is hard. I love so many, but Elf is a good one that we watch every year.”

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Arielle Loewen responded by saying, “I always love the Muppets’ Christmas Carol, Klaus, and Elf. But honestly, any Christmas movie, LOL. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a great family one we always watch.”

Kelsey Kiel shared that her go-to holiday movie is The Grinch, specifically the Jim Carrey version.

Hattie Kanyo shared the sentiment, with her favorites being either Elf or The Grinch. “Both hilarious and good,” she said.

Family-friendly movies were on the watchlist for quite a few people we asked, especially those watching with kids, like Loewen.

A Little Romance…

Christmas-themed rom-coms were also a popular choice among the athletes.

Brooke Wells said that her favorite is Four Christmases. She acknowledged that it’s not necessarily a “classic” film but perhaps a modern favorite.

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Annie Thorisdottir, Jayson and Grace Ann Hopper, and Katrin Davidsdottir all let us know that their favorite film this time of year is 2006’s The Holiday, which stars Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, and Jack Black.

…and a Little Action

Dallin Pepper told us, “You can go ahead and put mine down as Die Hard.” When asked if that was his wife Korrin’s favorite holiday movie, too, he gave a simple “Nope.”

While the debate over Die Hard’s Christmas merits is neverending, it is set during the holidays and features Christmas music and decorations. We’ll allow it.

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Dramas, Comedies, and Some Non-Traditional Takes

Chandler Smith said, “We just watched The Holdovers, and it’s our new favorite! Reminds me of a lot of the experiences I had at my all-boys school, at West Point, and coaching at a private school like the one in the movie.”

This is the most recent movie mentioned, having just been released in October 2023. It stars Paul Giamatti and Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance.

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Emily Rolfe told us that her favorite is “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, DUH!”

Sometimes, a Christmas movie is all about how you frame it. For Dani Speegle and Andrea Nisler, their go-to holiday movies aren’t traditional favorites but are worth watching (and perhaps binging) nonetheless.

Speegle, a self-proclaimed Harry Potter fanatic, told us that she watches the Harry Potter movies “on repeat” this time of year, every year.

Nisler “absolutely” has a favorite holiday movie. “Mean Girls takes the win every year,” she said. “And before you tell me it’s not – it’s totally a Christmas movie,” she added.

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