In Down Under Championship Qualifiers, Some Elite Athletes Moved from Intermediate to Elite Team Division

Qualifying for Australia’s largest off-season CrossFit competition, the Down Under Championship took place over two big weeks of online fitness, but not without some slight controversy. 

While the Elite Individual and Team rosters are currently being finalized, the Down Under Championship Qualifier (DUCQ) judges had their work cut out for them, when it became clear that Elite-level athletes had registered as Intermediates. 

The details: On August 29, the Down Under Championship posted the following statement on their Instagram account and several Intermediate Teams were moved from both the Male and Female Intermediate Team divisions:

• “As we review the leaderboard & scores, it has been made apparent that there were a number of athletes who sit within the top 500 of the 2023 CrossFit Open leaderboard, who have registered as Intermediates.” 
• “To maintain the integrity of the Intermediate category, and the event, we have made adjustments to the leaderboard and contacted those athletes to roll them over to the Elite division.” 
• “While the DUCQ is the stepping stone to qualify for the DUC Event, above everything else, we want the DUCQ to be an inclusive and fair event for everyone.” 

The bottom line: The roster for all divisions will be finalized by September 27, 2023. These athletes will be invited to compete at the Down Under Championship Final in Wollongong, Australia, on December 1-3, 2023. Here we will see:

• Futures (16-19 years): Top 8 males and females
• Masters: Top 8 men and women in each age group
• Intermediate Teams: Top 16 male and female teams
• Elite Teams: Top 20 male and female teams
• Elite Individuals: Top 20 men and women

In addition to the athletes who qualify through the DUCQ process, the Down Under Championship announced that they will reserve spots in the Elite Individual and Elite Team divisions for athletes who have competed in the CrossFit Games. These athletes will be selected at the discretion of the event organizers. 

Last year, several high profile CrossFit Games athletes traveled to Australia to compete at the 2022 Down Under Championship including Chandler Smith, Noah Olsen, Saxon Panchik and Lauren Fisher. Who will we see heading down under this year?