We are just over a week away from the start of the 2024 CrossFit Games season and the team landscape is starting to take shape. Over the past few weeks teams have been rolling out their announcements in the lead-up to the Open. While none of the teams from last year’s podium are back, there are some athletes who have reformulated their team for another run this year. So let’s go around the world and take a look at the super teams looking to make some noise this season.
Kicking things off Down Under, there are two teams worth a particular focus. Royce Dunne, Christee Hollard and Marnie Sykes are back having won the Oceania Semifinal last year with Jack Jeffery stepping in to Brandon Swan’s vacated spot on CrossFit Torian Mayhem.
Aiming to push them for every point will be the Gold Coast’s offering of James Newbury, Emily DeRooy, Khan Porter and Kara Saunders, a gladiatorial effort. Emily finished 3rd at Torian as an individual last year and Khan’s last run brought him to fourth in Madison on CrossFit Reykjavic, Newbury is no stranger to The CrossFit Games last finishing fifth in 2019 and Kara is one of the best CrossFit athletes of her era and is returning to competition having added another child to her family. You can also expect CrossFit Plus64 to have a team that won’t roll over easy at Torian when the time comes.
Moving to Africa and Asia next, they will also have teams present.
Bridging the gap between Asia and Europe will be Jamie and Elliot Simmonds who are currently based in the UAE. Both are no strangers to team competition having finished 3rd in 2016 on CrossFit Yas. This year they’re linking up with Mia Hesketh in CrossFit Walleye and rounding out the quartet is Kristof Horvath. The last time these four took to the floor together they finished second in Madrid CrossFit Championships in 2022.
CrossFit Oslo are next to keep an eye on. A name synonymous with the Affiliate Cup in CrossFit having had Oslo Navy Blue podium three years in a row and a slew of teams make it to both Semifinals and the Games last year.
This year, the Kriger Training-led Oslo are aiming to have around 10 teams take on Quarterfinals with hopes of getting three of four through each of the qualification stages and on to Texas. The original quartet from Oslo Navy Blue have all gone on to different things but some members remain from Blackout and NAJS, who finished 14th and 27th, respectively, in Madison last year.
An international branch of Kriger, containing one of those Navy Blue athletes in Lena Richter, is on Noah Ohlsen’s Peak360 team. Ohlsen is making his bow in the team arena having cut his teeth in off-season team competitions in Madrid, Down Under and TYR Wodapalooza (podiuming at all events). Joining him will be one of the best team athletes on the Open leaderboard, Tola Morakinyo; Richter, as mentioned, and Matilde Garnes, a two-time individual competitor in Madison and once team in 2018 and multi year IF3 champion. All the athletes have moved to Miami to train with Noah at Peak360 and have high hopes and aspirations for the season.
When he announced his retirement from individual competition, Ohlsen declared that he and Chandler Smith were going to take on the team field in 2024. They kicked off their global team preparation with victory at the Madrid CrossFit Championships before heading to Down Under in Wollongong, Australia and TYR WZA in Miami where they picked up more podium placements. However, due to logistics, mainly geography, their plan of Affiliate Cup triumph proved to be a bridge too far for the buddies so, instead, they’ll come face to face in Texas.
Having had his most successful individual season to date, Chandler Smith is stepping up to the reigning champions of the Affiliate Cup, Invictus are back with Joshua Al-chamaa and Devyn Kim, who both won gold last year in Madison. The final member of the team will be Lauren Fisher who is no stranger to team competition having finished fourth in 2022 and third, with Invictus, in 2019. Invictus has more teams vying for a spot in Texas, too; Unconquerable with Emily Rethwill and Jessi Smith aiming to return to the Games with Phil Muscarella and Fernando Ayon. Fresh off the Master’s podium last year, Jenn Ryan will join Unbroken with Lauren Stallwood, Tyler Soderback and Sean Early.
Sticking with America, we know Angelo DiCicco is bringing back the Mayhem team with Sam and Zoe from last year and another female athlete, who has yet to be confirmed but rumor has it she has some Games chops about her. Underdogs also have a team training out of Camp Rhino in Vegas. Mitch McClune is back from injury and a frustrating 2023 season, teaming up with Ava Georg, CJ Gerald and Carson Wolfe.
There’s a lot more teams still to be announced but I’m probably the only one still reading this. Regardless, it’s shaping up to be the most hotly contested team season to date (he says, just like he did last year…and the year before).
