As we get closer to the CrossFit Open Workout 25.1 announcement, the competitive landscape has continued to shift in significant ways.
While some athletes have posted advertisements for the Open (labeled #ad and/or #sponsored, and collabed with CrossFit and the CrossFit Games), others have begun to publicly declare their intention to sit out of the 2025 CrossFit Games season. Instead, they are choosing to focus on other competitive fitness events, including the World Fitness Project, the Rogue Invitational, TYR Wodapalooza, and HYROX.
Here’s a list of the athletes who are skipping the 2025 CrossFit Open so far:
- Annie Thorisdottir
- Elisa Fuliano
- Patrick Vellner
- Emma Tall
- Emma McQuaid
- Luka Ðukić
- Chandler Smith
- Jelle Hoste
This list will be updated as athletes make public statements. It will not include athletes who were otherwise planning to do the Games season but dropped out due to injury or other circumstances.
- Worth noting: The athletes on this list have a combined 42 Games appearances, 33 Games event wins, 11 Games podium finishes, and two Games championships.
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The Details
On November 20, 2024, CrossFit HQ shared that while the third-party investigation into Lazar Ðukić’s death had wrapped, none of the details or findings would be released to the public.
Instead, CrossFit laid out a six-point plan it would put into place for the 2025 CrossFit season. Key points of the plan stood out to many community members and athletes, including:
- Dave Castro would remain in his current position.
- A “Senior Safety Leader” would be hired to report to Castro, not the other way around.
- Also, there would be an “Athlete Council,” which would be separate from the PFAA, an independent athlete board already in place.
As the news spread and had time to settle, athletes reacted to these decisions on social media.
Freya Moosebrugger, Annie Thorisdottir, Julia Kato, and Cody Anderson posted critical comments on the CrossFit Games Instagram account, with Anderson even asking if CrossFit was “actively trying to sabotage itself at this point with the decisions that are being made.”
- Eik Gylfadottir also commented: “This is simply not good enough! No accountability, hopeless suggestions completely out of sync with what the athletes are requesting. Want to repair? How about starting by honoring your promise of transparency.”
The loudest voice was that of Luka Ðukić, who posted a critical message to CrossFit that same day:
- “No investigation can reveal anything other than the fact that there was no reaction when it was needed.”
Closing out his statement, Ðukić encouraged followers to “think carefully” when signing up for the Open or paying affiliate fees, as he views CrossFit LLC as “a company that does not value human life.”
This post from November 20 was the first mention of the 2025 CrossFit Open by a Games athlete.
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Over the next several days, reshares of Ðukić’s post began to appear from Elisa Fuliano, Luka Vunjak, Bayley Martin, Caroline Spencer, and Caroline Lambray, among other athletes, coaches, creators, and community members.
Two days later, CrossFit shared its changes for the upcoming season, an announcement that was met with even more disappointment from many members of the community, including some elite athletes.
A month later, in mid-December, Emma Tall was interviewed on The Athlete Zone Podcast, where she recalled her experience during Event 1 at the CrossFit Games.
In it, she is asked if she was asked if she was going to participate in the CrossFit Games season.
- “I haven’t spoken about this at all, but I’m most likely not going to do that. But if my lat is good enough, I will do (TYR) Wodapalooza in January,” she said.
Tall said that the decision was motivated by HQ’s response, or lack of response, to the PFAA’s demands made earlier in the year.
Athletes Drop Out of the 2025 CrossFit Open
At the end of January, where Annie Thorisdottir and Katrin Davidsdottir were interviewed by the Buttery Bros while competing at TYR Wodapalooza in Miami.
In the interview, Thorisdottir made it clear that she would not be competing in the CrossFit Open this year.
This is the first time since its inception that she wouldn’t be taking part. Days later, on February 5, she shared this same sentiment on social media.
- “I have been a part of the CrossFit Open since the first time it started, and this will be the first time I will not be taking part in the CrossFit Open,” Thorisdottir said.
Elisa Fuliano posted shortly after, saying that she would also skip the Open this year.
- “After a lot of thinking, I’ve come to the decision that I won’t be signing up for the Open this year,” she wrote.
She cites the nature of Lazar’s death at the 2024 CrossFit Games and the lack of accountability afterward by CrossFit HQ as the reasons behind her decision.
While Chandler Smith had indicated that he would be stepping away from CrossFit months prior, he shared his sentiments clearly in an Instagram post days after Fuliano’s.
- “Today I’m using my voice and following it up with action: I will not be competing in the 2025 CrossFit Games season,” Smith posted.
The following day, we learned of Pat Vellner’s decision to step away from the CrossFit season as well.
- “I’ve decided not to compete in the 2025 CrossFit Games season. Sometimes, the best way to push for change is to take action, and this year I’m taking a stand by voting with my feet,” Vellner wrote.
Over the weekend, Jelle Hoste shared that he, too, was out for the Open.
- “Silence doesn’t drive change – action does. That’s why I won’t be competing in the 2025 CrossFit Games season.”
In light of these announcements and the weight they have on the community as a whole, we reached out to CrossFit HQ for a statement last week. They have not responded as of this article’s publication.
While a handful of athletes have declared their non-participation, others have created posts and shared sentiments of support of the Open.
Athletes like Rebecca Fuselier, James Sprague, Hattie Kanyo, and more have posted reels collabing with the CrossFit Games Instagram account. In these posts, they share what the Open means to them and its significance in their lives as athletes and community members.
The Bottom Line
The submission for the first Open workout closes on Monday, March 3. While, technically, Open registration remains open through March 17, we’ll have a pretty clear view as to who is and is not participating this year by March 3.
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Featured image: Scott Freymond
