Now that the Open is over, it’s time to recognize the best performances from our CrossFit GVA community and present the awards.
Let's start by giving credit to those who finished all 5 WODs—which is already an accomplishment in itself! Of the 102 athletes registered at CrossFit GVA, about 60% completed and submitted their scores for each workout.
The following individuals did not win an award but deserve special mention for their exceptional and/or memorable performance.
Tristan had an excellent performance in the individual Open, finishing 10th overall in Switzerland.
Once you reach a decent level of performance, it's very hard to improve. But Mary can do it! She was 23rd in Switzerland last year and 12th this year.
Alberto was our Rookie of the Year in 2018. In 2019, he continued to climb the rankings, moving up from 188th in Switzerland last year to 46th.
In terms of longevity, a special mention goes to Ewen, who competed in his 7th consecutive Open!
And now, here are the awards we have decided to present in the following categories:
- Best Performance by a Rookie
- Most Improved Athlete
- Better overall mindset
- Best Individual Performance
- Best Newcomer
- Best Overall Performance
The award for Best Newcomer goes to a member who didn’t seem like a newcomer to those who saw him train, but who was actually competing in his first Open. Lucas Min delivered five outstanding performances and finished second in the overall CrossFit GVA standings. His global ranking is very impressive, as he finished 5,820th out of 185,000. Congratulations, Lucas!
There were many potential candidates for the Most Improved Player award. So we decided to award it to two players.
Sarah de Farias won the women’s award. She impressed everyone with her performance on 19.4, where she completed 10 superb muscle-ups. She managed to climb to 125th place in the Swiss rankings (up from 368th in 2018). On the men’s side, the award goes to Arnaud Talidec. Arnaud was very consistent in every workout and finished 7th in the CrossFit GVA rankings. In Switzerland, he moved up from 308th in 2018 to 156th in 2019. Congratulations, Sarah and Arnaud!
There were many nominees for the Best Newcomer Award. We decided to give a special mention to the CrossFit 101 group that trains with Charlie at 1227. Charlie did a remarkable job motivating his group, and they all signed up and participated in the 2019 Open together. The award goes to Rafa Guzman. His motivation and steady progress have been an inspiration to everyone. Way to go, Rafa!
The Best Individual Performance is another award where there could be multiple winners. The Open pushes athletes to surpass themselves. Some achieve feats they thought impossible, while others end up disappointed because their goals were too ambitious. In 2019, we therefore decided to award this prize to a member who not only achieved a goal they didn’t think was possible but also made an outstanding overall contribution during the competition. David Ferreira undoubtedly exceeded his own expectations with his first bar muscle-up, followed by six more during 19.4. David also volunteered his time each week to help with organization and judging. These various factors tipped the scales in his favor, and he therefore receives the award for Best Individual Performance. Congratulations, David!
The “Spirit Award” can be a subjective honor. Yet this year, it seemed obvious to us that we should present it to two people. As we’ve already said, the Open is no small feat. It’s hard to stay consistent and see those five endless weeks through to the end. Imagine, on top of that, doing it with a backpack—or, in this specific case, another human being—inside you?!?
Sam and Valentina are the winners of this special award for completing the 2019 Open while several months pregnant. They never complained about the WODs and never made excuses. They just kept pushing forward and completed all five workouts with flying colors. Congratulations, Sam and Valentina.
We’ll wrap up with the award for best overall performance. This award isn’t necessarily given to the person with the best individual result, but this year, it was. With numerous strong performances each year, Asa has won the award for the second year in a row. She finished 2nd in Switzerland in her category—the best performance from CrossFit GVA. Asa continues to train hard, train smart, train consistently, and improve. Way to go, Asa!
