• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
BarBend

BarBend

The Online Home for Strength Sports

  • News
    • CrossFit
    • Strongman
    • Bodybuilding
    • Top Athletes
    • Powerlifting
    • Weightlifting
    • Competition Results
    • Latest Research
  • Reviews
    • Recovery
      • Best Cold Plunges
      • Best Saunas
      • Best Mini Massage Guns
      • Individual Recovery Reviews
    • Supplements
      • Best Protein
        • Best Whey Protein Powders
        • Best Vegan Protein Powders
        • Best Whey Isolate Protein Powders
        • Best Mass Gainers
        • Best Protein Bars
      • Best Pre-Workouts
        • Best Pre-Workouts for Women
        • Best Pre-Workouts for Men
        • Best Non-Stim Pre-Workouts
        • Strongest Pre-Workouts
      • Best Creatine
      • Best Electrolyte Supplements
      • Best Greens Powder
      • Best Meal Replacements
      • Best Nitric Oxide Supplements
      • Best Fat Burners
        • Best Fat Burners for Men
        • Best Fat Burners for Women
        • Best Non-Stim Fat Burners
      • More Supplements
        • Best Supplements for Muscle Growth
        • Best Supplements for CrossFit
        • Best Supplements for Weight Loss
        • Best Supplements for Bodybuilding
        • Best Supplements for Men
        • Best Supplement Stacks
      • Individual Supplements Reviews
    • Equipment
      • Cardio
        • Best Treadmills
        • Best Rowing Machines
        • Best Exercise Bikes
        • Best Ellipticals
        • Best Recumbent Bikes
      • Strength
        • Best Adjustable Dumbbells
        • Best Dumbbells
        • Best Kettlebells
        • Best Barbells
        • Best Squat Racks
        • Best Free Weights
        • Best Weight Benches
        • Best Resistance Bands
        • Best Slam Balls
        • Best Weighted Vests
        • Best Leg Extension Machines
        • Best Cable Machines
        • Best Power Racks
        • Best Pull Up Bars
      • Best Home Gyms
        • Best Smart Home Gyms
        • Best Gym Equipment Under $100
        • Best Home Gym Essentials
        • Best Home Gym Flooring
      • Individual Equipment Reviews
    • Fitness Accessories
      • Apparel
        • Best Weightlifting Shoes
        • Best Cross Training Shoes
        • Best Gym Bags
        • Best Gym Shorts
      • Training
        • Best Weightlifting Belts
        • Best Knee Sleeves
        • Best Lifting Straps
        • Best Grip Strengtheners
        • Best Wrist Wraps
        • Best Lifting Gloves
      • Individual Fitness Product Reviews
    • Certifications
      • Best Sports Nutrition Certifications
      • Best Personal Trainer Certifications
      • Best Nutrition Certifications
      • Individual Certifications Reviews
    • Programs
      • Best Online Workout Programs
      • Best Workout Streaming Services
      • Best Home Workout Programs
      • Individual Program Reviews
  • Nutrition
    • Diets
      • Carb Cycling
      • Vertical Diet
      • Reverse Dieting
      • Carnivore Diet
      • Ketogenic Diet
      • Intermittent Fasting
      • IIFYM Diet
    • Fat Loss
      • Macros for Fat Loss
      • Calorie Deficits
      • Natural Fat Burners
      • Cut 2 Pounds Weekly
    • Muscle Gain
      • How to Dirty Bulk
      • Go From Cutting to Bulking
      • Eat These Carbs
      • How to Eat for Muscle
    • Supplement Guides
      • Pre-Workout
      • Whey Protein
      • Mass Gainers
      • Greens Powders
      • Creatine
      • BCAAs
    • Nutrition Tips
      • Daily Protein Needs
      • Pre- and Post-Workout Nutrition
      • Foods With Creatine
      • Bulking Tips
  • Training
    • Workouts
      • Back Workouts
      • At-Home Workouts
      • Chest & Back Workouts
      • Full-Body Workout
      • HIIT Workouts
    • Exercise Guides
      • Deadlift
      • Bench Press
      • Back Squat
      • Overhead Press
      • Bent-Over Row
      • Lat Pulldown
      • Crunches
      • Farmer’s Carry
    • Best Exercises
      • Shoulder Exercises
      • Back Exercises
      • Chest Exercises
      • Glute Exercises
      • Ab Exercises
      • Hamstring Exercises
      • Quad Exercises
      • Calf Exercises
      • Biceps Exercises
      • Triceps Exercises
    • Programs
      • Push-Up Program
      • Pull-Up Program
      • German Volume Training
      • 5/3/1 Program
      • Powerbuilding Program
      • The Cube Method
      • 5×5 Program
      • Bodybuilding Programs
      • Build Your Own Program
    • Fat Loss
      • How to Burn Fat
      • Spot Fat Reduction
      • How to Train on a Cut
      • Body Conditioning
      • Workouts
        • Kettlebell Circuits
        • Dumbbell Complexes
        • Farmer’s Carry Workouts
    • Muscle Gain
      • Muscle Hypertrophy Explained
      • How to Build Muscle
      • How to Maintain Muscle
      • What Researchers Say About Muscle Gain
        • Workouts
          • 20-Minute Workouts
          • Kettlebell Circuits
          • CrossFit Workouts for Muscle
          • Bodybuilding Workouts
  • Calculators
    • Protein Intake Calculator
    • Macros Calculator
    • BMR Calculator
    • Squat Calculator
    • Calorie Calculator
News CrossFit

Katrin Davidsdottir’s Dramatic Turnaround In the 2020 CrossFit Games

See how the two-time Champion qualified for the Finals.

Written by David Tao
Last updated on August 1st, 2023

Editors Note: The 2021 NOBULL CrossFit Games are live. Check out the latest results and scores from the Games here.

Katrin Davidsdottir is a 2-time CrossFit Games Champion and won the contest in 2015 and 2016. Second place both of those years went to Tia-Clair Toomey, who then went on to win the Games in 2017, 2018, and 2019. But while Davidsdottir is still looking for her third title, she hasn’t been a slouch. She’s made the Top 5 each year since 2015, cementing her status as one of the sport’s best athletes…ever.

After a come-from-behind finish during Stage 1 of this year’s CrossFit Games — where the athletes competed virtually — Davidsdottir punched her ticket to the Finals, where she’ll compete against Toomey, Brooke Wells, Haley Adams, and Kari Pearce.

Can Katrin Davidsdottir once again stand atop the CrossFit Games podium? We break down her Stage 1 performance, as well as her (many) strengths and (few) weaknesses as an athlete.

https://youtu.be/5dZ5BDnFvAs

Related: How to watch the 2020 CrossFit Games Finals.

Katrin Davidsdottir’s 2020 CrossFit Games

We break down Davidsdottir’s seven workouts from Stage 1, plus her strengths and weaknesses heading into the Finals in Aromas, California. 

00:00 Katrin Davidsdottir at the 2020 CrossFit Games
01:00 Katrin’s impressive CrossFit Games resume
02:02 Her Stage 1 performance
03:50 Her back-to-back event wins
04:45 Katrin Davidsdottir’s strengths and weaknesses

Katrin Davidsdottir’s Finals Performance

Event One — 2007 Reloaded

For time:

  • 1,500-meter row

Then five rounds of:

  • 10 bar muscle-ups
  • 7 shoulder-to-overheads — 145 pounds

It wasn’t looking good for the two-time Fittest Woman on Earth. She was well behind the rest of the field as the event was coming to a close. Tia-Clair Toomey had already won, Haley Adams posted an impressive second place finish, Kari Pearce claimed third, and Davidsdottir was not yet through the muscle-ups in the finals round.

It wasn’t until Brooke Wells began to struggle with the shoulder-to-overheads in the final round. Fighting for a fourth-place finish, Wells kept failing reps causing her pace to slow significantly. This opened the door for Davidsdottir to move up a rank in event one. She jogged from the muscle-ups to her barbell — no small feat in an event this difficult — and was able to hoist her final seven reps to overtake Wells and place fourth in the event.

Event Two — Corn Sack Sprint

For time:

320-meter hill sprint with a corn sack — 30 pounds

Davidsdottir was aiming for a big finish coming off a narrow fourth place in event one and came out of the gates blazing. Once all the competitors hit the first hill and found their way to a single file, Davidsdottir was behind Toomey and Wells, respectively. As the hills got steeper, Wells began to drop off allowing Davidsdottir to overtake second position and that is where she ended up. A second-place finish for Davidsdottir with a time of 3:13.18 puts her right back into the running at the top of the leaderboard after two events.

Event Three — CrossFit Total

For total load:

1-rep-max back squat
1-rep-max shoulder press
1-rep-max deadlift

The commentary team made it a point to reiterate that Davidsdottir would potentially struggle with this event due to a disc injury in her back that she recently recovered from. That didn’t seem to phase Davidsdottir as her technique was clean throughout and she didn’t hold back attempting big weights that could impact her place on the leaderboard.

As the event progressed, it became a battle for fourth position between Davidsdottir and Adams. Davidsdottir ended up failing her final deadlift attempt, which netted her a last-place finish as Adams posted a huge final lift. Here was Davidsdottirs lifts that culminated to a 701-pound total:

  • Squat — 269 pounds
  • Shoulder Press — 137 pounds
  • Deadlift — 295 pounds

Event Four — Handstand Sprint

For time:

100-yard handstand walk

Although Davidsdottir won the handstand hold in Stage One, she was unable to follow up that performance here in the handstand sprint. Her time of 1:40 was good enough for fourth place, only besting Toomey’s last place time of 2:05.67.

Event Five — Ranch Loop

Run along 3-mile± course through varying terrain

This was a huge come from behind victory for Davidsdottir after taking advantage of the twist that competitors had to run the course a second time in reverse. It was her first win of the finals and pushed her up into third place overall at the end of day one.

Do you think the two-time Fittest Women on Earth will land on the podium when all is said and done? Let us know in the comments!

Event Six — Toes-To-Bar/Lunge

30-20-10 reps for time:
Toes-to-bar
Kettlebell lunge (yards) — 24-kilogram kettlebells 

Davíðsdóttir led this event early, but was overtaken by Toomey who implemented a clever strategy of placing her kettlebells underneath her during the toes-to-bars rather than dropping them at the starting line of each length. This saved her some critical seconds and thrust Davíðsdóttir into a second-place finish.

Event Seven — Snatch Speed Triple

For time:

One snatch at each bar

  • Quarterfinal:
      Women 145-150-155 pounds
  • Semifinal:
      Women 160-165-170 pounds
  • Final:
      Women 175-180-185 pounds

This event was a fast battle between Toomey and Wells and left Davíðsdóttir behind to clean up a third-place finish. Davíðsdóttir was working her way back up the leaderboard with consistent solid finishes.

Event Eight — Bike Repeater

10 rounds:
440-meter bike sprint
One legless rope climb — 15 feet

Davíðsdóttir did not fare as well in this event as a weakness on the rope climbs shown through. Her technique of using bent arms to climb the rope caused fatigue and added a lot of time to her fourth-place finish. Her official time was 15:36.02.

Event Nine — Happy Star

Four rounds:

200- to 300-meter hill run

5-7-9-11 reps of:

  • Burpee
  • Thruster — 95-105-110-115 pounds

Davíðsdóttir closed out day two with another third-place finish to continue her consistency at the Games Finals. Her official time was 9:32.02, only behind Pearce and Toomey, who were in second and first, respectively.

Event Ten — Swim ‘N’ Stuff

Four rounds, each for time:

  • Air bike calories (10 | 15)
  • 50-meter swim
  • 10 GHD sit-ups
  • 10 ball slams 40 pounds
  • Rest

Davíðsdóttir’s consistency crossed over into the final day with yet another third-place finish. No one was beating Toomey in this event due to how fast she was in the water, but Davíðsdóttir was able to outpace both Wells and Pearce with an official time of 8:47.62.

Event Eleven — Sprint Sled Sprint

  • 100-yard sprint
  • 100-yard sled push — 80-pound sled
  • 100-yard sprint

Steady as she goes — another third-place finish for Davíðsdóttir who had positioned herself into second overall. This event was all about the battle between Toomey and Wells for first, but Davíðsdóttir was across the finish line shortly thereafter to rack up 55 points.

Event Twelve — Atalanta

While wearing a 14-pound vest:

  • One mile run
  • 100 handstand push-ups
  • 200 pistol squats
  • 300 pull-ups
  • One mile run

This event was the highlight reel for Kari Pearce who dominated this event, besting the nine other athletes in the field. The only competitor able to give her a sweat was Davíðsdóttir who came within four pull-ups at one point and compelled Pearce to amp up her pace in the final run. A second-place finish for Davíðsdóttir cemented a silver-medal finish at the Games.

Was Davíðsdóttir’s performance at the Finals what you expected? Let us know in the comments!

About David Tao

BarBend's Co-Founder and CEO, David is a veteran of the health & fitness industry, with nearly a decade of experience building and running editorial teams in the space. He also serves as a color commentator for both National and International weightlifting competitions, many through USA Weightlifting.

View All Articles

Primary Sidebar

Latest News

Best Cyber Monday Weight Bench Deals (2023)

Official Strongman Games and CrossFitter Dominates Weightlifting, Strength Weekly 12/7

International Association of Trans Bodybuilders & Powerlifters 2023 Full Results

Do All High-Carb Diets Lead to Weight Gain?

Dana Linn Bailey’s 4 Meal Prep Tips for Beginners

Latest Reviews

Redwood Thermowood Panorama Sauna Review

Redwood Outdoors Yukon Cold Plunge Tub Review

Redwood Outdoor Thermowood Garden Sauna Review

Future App Review

Bells of Steel Hydra Rack Review

BarBend

BarBend is an independent website. The views expressed on this site may come from individual contributors and do not necessarily reflect the view of BarBend or any other organization. BarBend is the Official Media Partner of USA Weightlifting.

  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • Contact Us
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest

Sections

  • CrossFit
  • Strongman
  • Bodybuilding
  • Powerlifting
  • Weightlifting
  • Reviews
  • Nutrition
  • Training

More

  • BarBend Newsletter
  • BarBend Podcast
  • The Ripped Report
  • 1RM Calculator
  • BMR Calculator
  • Macros Calculator
  • Protein Calculator
  • Squat Calculator

Policies

  • Accessibility
  • Advice Disclaimer
  • Cookies Policy
  • Disclaimers
  • Disclosures
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Copyright © 2023 · BarBend Inc · Sitemap