The Open
What is The Open?
The Open is the beginning process of finding the Fittest Man and Woman on earth. But that is for the 1% of the 1%. What the Open really is is a way for our community to come together to have fun, push each other, and push ourselves beyond limits we have set on ourselves. If you pay the $20 to CrossFit Inc on their website, you are put on the global leaderboard for your division. You can also create special custom leaderboards for yourself (In 2020, I got 1st place for dads of 4 in MN ages 35-40…BOOM!). It’s really not about being at the top of the leaderboard, but rather to see your progress and to overcome movements you didn’t think you ever would. Many people’s firsts have happen during the Open; first pull-up, first muscle up, first handstand push up, first time at a certain weight, first “competition”, etc. Plus, it’s fun to do the same workout as the Fittest on Earth and to see how amazing those athletes truly are.
This year is pretty special for the CrossFit Games. With the new ownership, there have been many changes, and if you ask me for the best. They have made the affiliates around the world feel more like a family, they have focused more on community, diversity, and inclusion, and they have been more transparent than ever before. For the 2021 Games season, they have added divisions to prove this. The addition of the divisions like that for adaptive athletes put their “money where their mouth is”. They are reaching further into communities than ever before to try to bridge the gaps that CrossFit has traditionally had.
So, why should you do the Open and how will that look at CrossFit Grow? You should first and foremost because you’re gonna do the workouts anyways. Every Friday during the Open we will be programming the Open workout for that week. It also gives you a chance to watch your progress from year to year as you try to best your global position. In 2020, I finally cracked the top 10,000 for myself!!! May have helped that I am now a Masters athlete and there are significant less of us that the main bunch, but we don’t need to dwell on that. I encourage you to ask others who have participated their why. And finally, whether you sign up or not, we will be putting everyone on “teams” captained by coaches for a little extra fun. And everyone who signs up will earn a few bonus points to help their team as we compete for the first ever CFG Open Cup. Go here to sign up, and we will see you in the Open!
