TEAM TRAVELS IN STRENGTH TO CROSSFIT GAMES FINALS
Five athletes from the Matt Hampson Foundation have qualified for the Adaptive CrossFit Games in Las Vegas this week, making it the best-represented team in this global event.
The team will fly the flag for the Foundation in the competition while also helping to raise awareness of its work with young people after life-changing injury from its Gest Busy Living Centre in Leicestershire and regional hubs in the North-East and South-East of England.
In a field of 300 athletes from all over the world, the Foundation will be represented by Sophie Wilson, Taylor Gough, Kylie Gough, James Sutliff and Jacob Smith who all came through gruelling qualifying tests to earn their places.
Sophie, with support from Barratt Redrow, also represented the Foundation in 2024, picking up a silver medal in her first year of crossfit competition, while her four team-mates all make their finals debuts this year in an event which continues to grow with the surge in interest of fitness competition.
After narrowly missing out of the finals last year, ‘Sutty’ who works as personal trainer for Foundation beneficiaries, made it through this time and said: “This is a huge step forward and I am ready to give it everything I have got on the competition floor.”
Matt Hampson, who created the Foundation to support young people to ‘get busy living’ following life-changing injury in sport, said: “It’s amazing to see the Foundation’s name on a world stage like this, especially as crossfit is becoming so popular.
“The workouts in qualifying looked really tough so we are all incredibly proud to see five of our members gain a place in the finals in Las Vegas.
“We look forward to watching their progress and wish them all well for the trip.”
The Adaptive CrossFit Games, hosted by WheelWOD, takes place over three days (12th-14th September) with competition based on a series of tests of strength, endurance and skill, and overall placings determined by points gained in each challenge.
The competition is streamed online. See www.wheelwodgames.com for details.
