This week has been absolutely huge with news impacting the 2018 Reebok CrossFit Games, and we’ll catch you up to speed on everything below. The latest news comes from European Regionals first place finisher Roman Khrennikov, and comes as a shock to many CrossFit athletes and fans around the world.
Yesterday, Khrennikov shared an Instagram post that states he will not be attending the 2018 Reebok CrossFit Games. In his Instagram post (loosely translated through the Instagram app) he writes,
“Dear Friends, thank you for all you support and willingness to help me! Unfortunately, I won’t be able to attend Crossfit Games. I’d be lying if I said I am not upset, but the circumstances are beyond my control, I’ve done all I possibly could, and I proved to myself and you (fans) that it’s possible to qualify for Crossfit Games. Let the preparations for 2019 season begin!”
In the comments section below, many discussed that Khrennikov was twice denied a visa to travel to the United States, and pretty much all of the potential options to obtain one had been exhausted, thus forcing Khrennikov to withdraw from the CrossFit Games. Many fans were excited to watch Khrennikov perform at the Games, as he put on a commanding performance at this year’s Regionals competition, which consisted of only one event finish above 5th place.
While under much different circumstances, Khrennikov will now be the second athlete from the 2018 European CrossFit Regionals competition that will not be attending this year’s Games. Three days ago, CrossFit HQ released a long list of Regionals athletes that were in breach of the CrossFit Games drug policy, and fourth place European Regionals athlete Andrey Ganin was among those listed.
Also among the list was 4-time Games competitor Emily Abbott, who’s since released a response to the ban, and three other Games-bound team athletes (and eight more Regionals athlete).
Feature image from @cf_khrennikov_roman Instagram page.