Another CrossFit Games has come and gone, and as fans of the sport, we feel a bit like a child on the day after Christmas: Still full of cheer, yet disappointed as the Games are now a whole year away.
- All we can do now is remember the excitement and the impressive performances we witnessed, until it’s time to gear up for 2026.
5 of the Most Impressive Individual Performances From Albany
Toomey-Orr Takes on the Men’s Field in “Row/Run/Row”
We should be accustomed to it by now, as Toomey-Orr often outperforms many male competitors in mass-start endurance events, especially those involving swimming. Still, watching her do so never gets old.
- Toomey-Orr began her competition by beating 19 of the 30 men (and tying another) on “IE1: Run/Row/Run,” marking her first of four event wins over the weekend.
What made this performance particularly impressive is that there were 3000 meters of rowing between the four-mile run and the run-mile run, which highlights just how strong a runner Toomey-Orr is, since taller, heavier men have a significant advantage in rowing.
Honorable mention: Aimee Cringle wasn’t far behind Toomey-Orr. She also beat 18 of the men.
Campbell’s Cleans on “Climbing Couplet”
CrossFit emphasizes adaptation, and second-place finisher Lucy Campbell proved that during the cleans in “IE3: Climbing Couplet.”
Remind me: Campbell suffered a serious wrist injury that sidelined her for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Doctors advised her to switch to a different sport, but Campbell ignored that advice. After two surgeries and a lengthy rehab, she has come back stronger than ever. That said, she still struggles to catch the barbell during heavy clean lifts.
To avoid wrist extension, Campbell’s solution on “IE3: Climbing Couplet” was to perform a one-handed clean, catching the barbell with one hand while simultaneously extending her other arm straight out into a Zombie squat position and letting the barbell land directly onto her collarbones.
- While we don’t recommend you try this at home, go ahead and attempt a one-handed zombie squat with 205 pounds and let us know how much more difficult it feels compared to a regular front squat.
Ultimately, heading into the event, we all expected it to be a damage control situation for Campbell, as she had also told us that cleans were a weakness of hers even before her wrist injury. But she not only avoided damage, Campbell finished sixth.
Mertens’ Max Back Squat
For many top male CrossFit athletes, a 500-pound back squat has become the goal – an achievement only Scott Panchik reached during the “CrossFit Total” event at the 2018 CrossFit Games, and a lift no man, not even Mat Fraser, accomplished during the “CrossFit Total” at the 2020 Games.
- On the weekend, Colten Mertens opened at 535 pounds and went on to put up a 570-pound squat, shattering any one-rep max back squat we have seen at a CrossFit Games in the past.
Honorable mention: Nick Mathew also crushed the 500-pound mark, hitting 555 pounds for second place.
Hatfield Heats Up on “Going Dark” and “Running Isabel”
Austin Hatfield reminded us on Sunday morning that it’s never over until it’s over.
- He entered the final day of competition in eighth place overall but secured back-to-back wins on “IE8: Going Dark” and “IE9: Running Isabel,” launching himself into third place with one event remaining.
Hatfield made it impossible not to root for him to reach the top spot with just one event remaining, in what was the tightest men’s race in history, where only 33 points separated first from sixth going into the final event.
Hatfield ultimately didn’t succeed, but his performances and the entertainment they delivered on Sunday morning will be remembered for some time.
Kerstetter Konquers “Atlas”
While the top two spots on the women’s side were a near lock going into the final event, the third podium spot was still wide open.
- Only 28 points separated Arielle Loewen, who was in third, and Mirjam von Rohr in eighth. Kerstetter was in fifth at that time.
A win at “IE10: Atlas” could have allowed any of the top six women — Loewen, Sturt, Kerstetter, Cringle, Danielle Brandon, and von Rohr — to reach the podium.
Kerstetter, a two-time teen champion who is still only 19, seized the opportunity.
- Kerstetter appeared calm and poised throughout the event, attacking the rope climbs and thrusters with intelligence and awareness of her body’s limits. She pulled ahead of the field with a two-rep lead on the final set of rope climbs.
All that remained was a 100-foot overhead walking lunge with a 95-pound barbell, and Kerstetter wasted no time. By the time she had finished half of the lunge, the next two competitors, Toomey-Orr and Brandon, were only just beginning theirs.
Knowing she was well ahead, Kerstetter dropped the barbell for a quick rest before finishing strong and winning the event, ultimately clinching the final podium spot.
The Bottom Line
As the curtain falls on the 2025 CrossFit Games, the standout performances – the intense grit, inspiring comeback stories, and record-breaking feats – remind us why we keep coming back year after year.
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Featured Image: Scott Freymond
