CrossFit Games Rookie Spotlight: How Being a Better Human Made Aniol Ekai a Better Athlete
The hotbed of CrossFit was initially in the United States (especially California), but the strength of the sport in Europe is clearly on the rise.
- From the packed LDLC Arena, where the 2024 European Semifinal took place with the passionate fans screaming for their countrymen and women, to the athletic prowess demonstrated on the competition floor, the future of CrossFit appears to be in Europe.
One man who hopes to play a role in that future is Aniol Ekai from Spain, who just finished fourth in the European Semifinal and earned a trip to Texas and the CrossFit Games.
[Related: Best Non-Stim Pre-Workouts]
Ekai’s athletic career began when he was young. He started judo at three and then transitioned to soccer.
He discovered CrossFit in his teens.
- Ekai explained how it started: “My sister had a friend doing CrossFit in their parent’s garage, and I visited them in the summer of 2013, when I was 15 years old, to get physically prepared for soccer. I would train three times a week in the off-season every year.”
This continued for several years until the tipping point when Ekai began enjoying CrossFit more than soccer.
His focus quickly shifted, and by 2020, he was seeing results.
Getting Serious
That year, Ekai finished second in Spain in the CrossFit Open, but he soon realized that he needed a coach and a program to follow if he wanted really compete.
- “I finished seventh at the Madrid Fitness Championship without involving myself so much, so I knew I had more things inside me,” Ekai told the Morning Chalk Up in an interview. “I tried to look outside where my home was and talked with Training Culture and Mike, their coach, and I moved in January 2022 to San Sebastian.”
Heading into last year’s Semifinal, Ekai was ranked eighth in Europe. Although he was the fittest he had ever been, something held him back.
- “I had some personal problems,” Ekai remembered, “and the last two weeks [leading into the competition] were not good in training. My mind was not in a good place to push, and I felt it during the entire competition.”
He finished in 22nd place.
[Related: Best Air Bikes]
The summer after Semifinals, Ekai disconnected from CrossFit, spending his time reading and learning how to focus better, even spending time at a retreat to work on his mindset.
However, this wasn’t just to better his athletic performance.
- “It was a massive fail for me because I knew that my fitness at that time was one of the top eleven in Europe. Still, it helped me figure out a lot about myself – who I am and what I wanted to do because, at that time, I was not mature.
Ekai shared that he “had done some stupid things in my relationship with my girlfriend,” and that he “was also not focused on my family.”
- It was part of a bigger picture for Ekai: “I didn’t do it because of CrossFit; I did it because of life. I felt like I had some things inside me that were not aligned with who I was or who I wanted to be.”
Becoming Better a Human
Not qualifying for the Games that year pushed Ekai over the edge and forced him to confront the issues he had been avoiding.
Heading into the Europe Semifinal this year, Ekai was fresh and focused.
- “I had fallen in love again with the sport, the suffering, and the community. I tried to be a better human being and an example for all in the Spanish community. I felt confident and relaxed in all the workouts and had confidence in myself,” Ekai described.
After cutting his teeth for several years in European competitions, Ekai is now known and respected in the European circuit but is still fighting for recognition from across the pond.
He was consistent throughout the weekend, with only two event finishes outside the top thirteen—his worst result was 20th place in Event 4.
[Related: Best Biceps Exercises]
Looking towards the Games, Ekai is hopeful.
- “All of the athletes at the Games are elite and at another level. It’s my rookie year, so I don’t have any expectations,” he said, “but I just want my mental place to feel the same that I felt in Semifinals. I was in the zone for the entire weekend, and if I am in the zone for all the workouts at the Games, I will be a pretty good athlete, and I will surprise a lot of people.”
Ekai’s robust support system includes his girlfriend, who will come to Texas with him in August.
She is a weightlifter who wants to qualify for the Olympics, so she understands the stress of training and competition. She will be competing soon to try to snag a spot on the Spanish team for 2028.
Ekai will be there cheering for her, just as she did for him in France at the European Semifinal.
This is the human connection Ekai was chasing so hard after having stress in their relationship during the 2023 Semifinals.
The two are now each other’s biggest cheerleaders.
- Ekai speaks joyfully about her and how far they have come: “I am really lucky that she supports me so much. Sometimes, the situation works like this, but I’m trying to be a better human and support her in everything that she does the same way that she does for me. She came to Semifinals and helped me with everything, and I am very excited to do the same for her.”
More Stories From the Morning Chalk Up
Catch up on MCU by checking out these stories:
- 6 Athletes Who Quietly Cruised to a 2024 CrossFit Games Spot
- 8 Way-Too-Early 2024 CrossFit Games Predictions
- UPDATE: 2024 CrossFit Games Prize Purse Details Revealed, No Increase From 2023 for Elites
Featured image: @madame__mel / Instagram