Jacob Heppner shows everyone how having fun is done at Pandaland CrossFit Challenge
- The American veteran gave the crowd in Chengdu a show as he held the lead for large parts of the weekend
Jacob Heppner looked like he was having a blast this weekend at the Pandaland CrossFit Challenge.
The four-time CrossFit Games veteran had a smile on his face throughout the grueling two-day competition. He was chatty with his competitors, always down for a fan’s selfie and looked to be in the exact centrifugal centre of his comfort zone.
Turns out the American has good reason to be relaxed while competing on the other side of the world – he has already unofficially qualified for the 2020 CrossFit Games as he came 18th in the CrossFit Open (the top 30 qualify automatically). Heppner said this affords him the chance to roll the dice a bit.
“The concept is that you can take more chances,” said the 29-year-old, who came sixth at the 2019 CrossFit Games. “So if I I’ve already qualified the opportunity is to come here and maybe do things a little bit differently. Like hypothetically, I might take bigger jumps on snatch, because I know I already have a slot there’s not as much pressure as if I had to get a spot.”
“CrossFit is the one sport where you want to win, don’t get me wrong, but at the same time you are so stoked and happy when guys you work out with win. I’ve grown up with some of the guys in this sport, would I have liked to win, absolutely, but I would rather see him punch his ticket, and you get to see the joy in his eyes.”