As the CrossFit season kicks off with Open Workout 24.1, athletes across age groups and individual divisions are logging their Open scores and embarking upon a months-long process to chase down a ticket to the CrossFit Games.
The youngest of the bunch, athletes aged 14-17, are competing for a chance to head to Three Rivers, MI, on Labor Day weekend to crown the Fittest Teen on Earth.
[Related: CrossFit Open Workout 24.1 Livestream Numbers Surpass 2023 Figures]
The details: This year, the Pit Fitness Ranch will host three separate events for young athletes. Besides the Teenage CrossFit Games, the original Pit Teen Throwdown and the Pit Collegiate Throwdown will also take place.
In addition to events at the Ranch, the teens will also compete a short drive away at Wings Event Center. In the Wings Center, athletes have access to a VIP lounge, vendor and media space, a large field of play, and a livestream.
2024 Teenage CrossFit Games
Unlike in the past, the teenage, masters, and adaptive divisions will host CrossFit Games on separate dates and in different locations from the individual and team divisions in Fort Worth, TX. The Pit Fitness Ranch hosts the 2024 Teenage CrossFit Games from August 29-September 1.
For teens to qualify for the Games, they will follow normal protocol as they have done in the past. They qualify through the online Open, then online Quarterfinals, and online Semifinals, which will then send 30 males and 30 females to Three Rivers. There are two divisions competing just like in the past (ages 14-15 and ages 16-17), making the total athlete head count 120.
Pit Teen Throwdown
The Pit Teen Throwdown is still happening as usual. To qualify for this, athletes must register and compete in the Open. Beyond that, there is no online qualifier. But when speaking with Stephanie Price, Director of Operations for the Pit Teen Throwdown, she explained that athletes are encouraged to compete at the highest level possible. For example, if the athletes qualify for Quarterfinals from the Open, she encourages them to compete.
Registration for the Throwdown will be live on June 17 and is on a first-come, first-served basis. There are 90 spots available and the event takes place on August 28.
Pit Collegiate Throwdown
For the third year, athletes can compete in the Pit Collegiate Throwdown. This is for athletes ages 18-22 (enrolled in college or not) who qualify by first competing in the Open and then competing in the qualifier workouts over six weeks, beginning June 9 and ending July 21. The top 60 young men and women will move on from the qualifiers to Michigan in August.
There is some speculation that there will be some athletes who compete at the individual Semifinals in the spring and then could compete in the Pit Collegiate Throwdown as well if they fail to qualify for the CrossFit Games.
Price shared that they are trying to emphasize and grow the Collegiate Throwdown this year. She and her team see this competitive group as one that falls between the cracks at times and is of an age where they need to keep competing, training, and setting goals.
- “Regarding the big picture, once you turn 18, you age up. Besides Dallin [Pepper], Mal [O’Brien], [and] Haley [Adams], who are outliers, you’re lost for about four to five years competitively. But this is an important demographic. When competing as a teen, someone goes from third place to then 18,000 when competing as an individual,” Price tells the Morning Chalk Up.
- “We really want to develop this age as its own division. Kids would be able to choose if they want to compete in the Collegiate Throwdown or possibly the Games. CrossFit has been so incredibly supportive of this and is helping us to grow it and have it become its own big thing,” Price says.
Price reveals that CrossFit has been extremely involved with planning, logistics, and operations in any way they can. Together, they strive to provide teen athletes with an authentic, meaningful Games experience, enhanced by the new location and dates.
- “In the past, the teens were relegated to the barn. [The 2023 CrossFit Games] was the first year that they were able to compete in the Coliseum,” Price says. “And nothing against anyone at CrossFit for that; it was just a huge logistical challenge with all the divisions there at one time, and there was limited bandwidth. Now, the teens get their own focus. We can put all our money, time, energy, and resources into them.”
[Related: 9 Tips To Be a Low-Maintenance CrossFit Open Participant This Year]
Price and her team meet regularly with the heads of WheelWOD (the hosts of the Adaptive CrossFit Games) and Legends (the hosts of the Masters CrossFit Games). They discuss moving parts, wins, and challenges, bouncing ideas off one another.
PFAA Mentorship Program
New this year is a partnership between the Pit Teen Throwdown and the Professional Fitness Athletes’ Association (PFAA) in the form of a mentorship program. CrossFit helped to facilitate this relationship and includes Games athletes like Pat Vellner, Arielle Loewen, Alex Gazan, Griffin Roelle, Tim Paulson, and many more.
Each mentor athlete has committed to 13 hours over the summer to head up a cohort of six to eight athletes. They will set up communication channels and share tips, calm nerves, and answer questions. There will be scheduled Google meet-ups and a streaming group workout, where the mentor athlete coaches the teens and provides feedback. The mentors are encouraged to attend the Teenage CrossFit Games and provide support to the young athletes.
The Bottom Line
Price’s enthusiasm for the upcoming season is apparent. She and her team are greatly looking forward to the changes that are coming their way and the myriad opportunities that they can provide their athletes in development and mentorship.
“We have a long-term picture. We’re developing leaders, not just athletes, but our future leaders of the world,” Price says.
Featured image: Pit Teen Throwdown
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