Opinion | CrossFit: Noah Ohlsen and Patrick Vellner vie for one last chance at glory, this time without Mat Fraser in their way

Name: CrossFit's China ambitions face huge hurdles despite middle-class demand for exercise options
Uploaded: 2021-04-20T14:00:22.000Z
Duration: 3 min 46 s
Description: CrossFit's China ambitions face huge hurdles despite middle-class demand for exercise options

The two veterans of the sport look to capitalise on their best chance to win the CrossFit Games in half a decade

Will it be the lovable Miami boy, or the ‘aw shucks’ Canadian taking the crown this year?

Reading Time:3 minutes

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Noah Ohlsen is loved by all in the CrossFit world, so is this finally his year? Photo: Facebook

Patrick Blennerhassett

Published: 10:00pm, 20 Apr 2021Updated: 1:07pm, 21 Apr 2021

With the departure of five-time CrossFit Games champion Mat Fraser, the men’s division of the sport has never been more wide open. Fraser’s walk off into the sunset means dozens of competitors now have a legitimate shot he took from them for half a decade.

Someone new is going to emerge victorious this season, and as the semi-finals are about to get official, fans already have their two favourites picked out.

Two names within the world of CrossFit continuously come up for two reasons: one, who should win the 2021 CrossFit Games, and two, who will win the CrossFit Games.

The first is the sport’s undeniable fan favourite, Miami boy Noah Ohlsen. The 30-year-old CrossFit Games veteran has the distinction of being the athlete who got the closest to dethroning Fraser.

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CrossFit's China ambitions face huge hurdles despite middle-class demand for exercise options

At the 2019 CrossFit Games, he wore the leader’s jersey for a substantial portion of the weekend, and ended up coming second to Fraser by 35 points, which is a razor thin margin in CrossFit.

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