The men’s field for the 2023 CrossFit Games season just took a major hit. Ricky Garard, one of the men expected to compete for the top of the podium this year, injured his shoulder while mountain biking. He has since had surgery and will now be on the sidelines this season.
Garard explained the situation on his YouTube channel this afternoon. Essentially, Ricky landed on his shoulder and ruptured the AC joint while doing some mountain biking. He ended getting surgery just two days ago.
He shared that he will be in a sling for four to six weeks and then begin rehab. In total, Ricky expects it will take upwards of six months to be back at full strength.
“I was shocked and disappointed obviously. I felt like Ricky had a great opportunity to win the 2023 Games. But after taking a few days to let it sink in, my focus changed to making sure we get him ready to dominate next season,” said Justin Cotler, Ricky’s coach, when asked about his reaction when he heard about the injury.
Cotler continued by looking forward to 2024, “The goal remains the same. And I believe this will be a minor bump in the road to an even more historic comeback.”
Ricky Garard entered the season coming off a 3rd place finish at the 2022 CrossFit Games following his return to competition. He followed that up by winning Wodapalooza this off-season, beating the likes of Roman Khrennikov and Pat Vellner.
And this season, Garard finished 7th in the Open worldwide and 15th in the world in Quarterfinals last month. Garard was the heavy favorite heading into the Oceania Semifinal, Torian Pro, the last weekend in May.
