Quarterfinals Floor Plans Create Logistical Challenges for Dukic Brothers

With the announcement of the floor plans for Quarterfinals some athletes are scrambling to find a place, or places, where they’ll be able to do the workouts. 

While many might think there’s nothing out of the ordinary on the equipment list, in the case of the Dukic brothers (and other Quarterfinalists in Serbia), there is a need to be creative to get these workouts done, though their strategies for doing so will be quite different.

The Dukic brothers take on Quarterfinals…in different countries: For Lazar Dukic, his strategy this year is going to involve some travel. He is boarding a plane the day before the workouts are announced and flying to France where he will be able to do all the workouts in one location; something that is not possible for him to do in Serbia. His long-time girlfriend has been studying in Strasburg where he’s stayed with her for extended periods of time before and therefore has familiarity and comfort training.

• His brother Luka, who has never been to France to train as his brother has, is choosing to stay in Serbia, which means he’ll have to travel between three different cities to complete the five Quarterfinal tests. 
• Lazar said of the different choices he and his brother are making, “I’m used to France, it would be his first time there in that gym. So maybe it’s better for him to travel around Serbia. I just know I don’t want to stress myself in that way.”

Some more details: GHD’s are not too common in Serbia, and while there is one at his brother’s gym in Temerin, a couple logistical concerns make that a less than ideal, and potentially unsafe environment to complete the first two workouts in. 

• His brother’s gym only has wall space for one handstand push up location. To set up a second one would mean doing it against a door which is unsafe. He will instead be transporting the GHD 25 kilometers to the city of Novi Sad to complete workouts one and two
• Neither his brother’s gym in Temerin, nor the location in Novi Sad, can accommodate the required set up for the rope climb, wall ball, and 25 foot of space layout for workout three however
• This means another trip, to the capital city of Belgrade (which is 120 kilometers away) will be required for Luka to complete that workout. All told he’ll have to travel several hundred kilometers and do the workouts at three different locations over the course of three days

The big picture: Having the floor layout plans for these workouts a couple days early has given the opportunity for athletes to prepare accordingly, but in some cases those preparations are far from straightforward. The Dukic brothers both made the Games last year, and Lazar placed ninth in the world. While CrossFit is making an effort to make these early stages of testing accessible, some of the decisions about the layouts for these Quarterfinal tests aren’t necessarily readily available for even some of the best international CrossFitters in the world.