In the early 2020s, a significant wave of young women transitioned from competing as teenagers at the CrossFit Games to competing as individuals.
Names like Emma Cary, Olivia Kerstetter, Emma Lawson, and Mal O’Brien all reached the Games in the Individuals category before they could legally purchase alcohol.
These women achieved multiple podium finishes as individuals, some quickly after they switched divisions.
The path, of course, was paved by Haley Adams, who finished second in 2016 and 2017 (14-15) and first in 2018 (16-17).
- In 2019, Adams decided to go individual.
As the Games approached, there was conversation about whether she could compete with the “big girls.” She did, and then some, finishing in sixth place that year; she has yet to finish outside the top 10 at the Games in her career.
Boys to Men
Until recently, there was no real equivalent on the men’s side of the field.
- Gui Malheiros made the jump in 2019, qualifying as a national champion in an odd year; however, there had yet to be successful teen boys who quickly transitioned to strong individual contenders until now.
But when it rains, it pours. Athletes like James Sprague, Tudor Magda, Jack Farlow, and Dallin Pepper are making names for themselves as individual men’s competitors.
Ty Jenkins, winner of the 2025 Syndicate Crown and rookie Games qualifier, appears to be next in line for a successful jump.
Young Guns
Teen athletes on the boys’ side didn’t start to attract much attention until 2017. That year, Cole Greashaber took third place in the 16-17 division but impressed fans with his potential.
The following year, the leaderboard saw an explosion of talent, with Tudor Magda and Dallin Pepper standing at the top of the podium in their respective age categories.
Sprague and Farlow joined the party the following year, both finishing in the top six in the older division, while Pepper again took first place.
- Pepper claimed a total of three teen championships, and until recently, he was the only athlete to hold that honor.
But Wait, Hold My (Root) Beer
Last year, Pepper was joined by another three-time teen champ, Ty Jenkins. After establishing himself as one of the top teen CrossFit athletes, he, like Pepper, has made the jump to Individual.
- Jenkins finished 31st in the Open in 2025 and won the Syndicate Crown, securing his spot at the 2025 CrossFit Games.
The 19-year-old Missouri native grew up in a sports-loving family. Jenkins played football, baseball, and swam throughout his youth, while his father attended a CrossFit affiliate. In high school, Jenkins joined him.
- “I was at the affiliate just using it as strength and conditioning to get better at sports,” Jenkins told the Morning Chalk Up in an interview. “A coach at our affiliate convinced me to sign up for my first Open in 2021.”
The man’s name was Carl Butts, and he changed Jenkins’ life.
“He knew nothing about coaching competitive CrossFit. He was a coach at our affiliate, but he dropped everything, and that summer, he would come in and watch me train every day. He was amazing, and he is the reason that I’m doing what I’m doing today.”
After his final teen win in 2023, Jenkins had to grow up fast to be ready to compete in his first Open in the men’s division in 2024. That year, he finished 52nd in his region in the Quarterfinals and failed to advance to Semis.
The Pepper Effect
Jenkins met Pepper briefly at the 2023 Games.
- “I was friends with James [Sprague], and James connected us; any friend of James is a friend of mine. I got to spend more time with Dallin, and obviously grew to like him.”
In October, Matt Torres, founder and head coach of Brute Strength, learned that Jenkins was looking for a coach.
A week later, Pepper, a Brute athlete, texted Jenkins, inviting him down to train together in Jacksonville, FL.
A week-long trip was arranged to train with the athlete whose journey Jenkins aimed to emulate.
- “After the first day, I knew I could train there,” Jenkins said.
He continued, “I was looking for a place to go. I love my community and affiliate back in Missouri, but ultimately, a training partner was going to elevate my fitness. And so I was searching for that and a coach. It started to align down in Jacksonville, and less than two months later, I was down there in an apartment moving in to take on this season with Dallin.”
Jenkins has now been in Florida for six months, and his relationship with Pepper has grown.
- “In the gym, I’m able to watch him train and learn things,” Jenkins said of his and Pepper’s relationship. “That’s one of the biggest things: just sitting back and watching someone as good as he is move – you learn a lot. And so I think the big brother relationship, as cliché as it is, is probably a good way to put it.”
The two started as training partners, working on their own programming and engaging in daily chit-chat related to training. But as the season has progressed, they’ve also been able to hang out outside the gym, often with Dallin’s wife Korrin, as well as Fee Saghafi and her husband Alex.
The Kids Are Alright
As more male teen competitors successfully transition into the elite individual field, Jenkins reflects on the core group who, in his view, paved the way.
- “I think that there was a wave of teens that took it really seriously who were Dallin’s age: James, Cole, Tudor. There were several names of elite men who punched their ticket within four to five years of being a teen competitor, and I think the shift is just that people are starting to take it seriously from a young age.”
All eyes are on Jenkins this August to see how he can build on an already stellar season and take his spot, shoulder-to-shoulder, with those men.
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Featured Image: Jesus Montero
