By Maysa Hannawi
Photo Courtesy of Fury Photography
If Saturday was for the girls, then Sunday was for The Boys.
In the sport of functional fitness, Sunday is known for being the most dramatic and ruthless day. The athletes know what is at stake, and they know that the points left up for grabs are quickly dwindling. Sunday of TYR Wodapalooza Miami was one of the best of them. The Boys showed up in a big way, eager to prove that they weren’t “washed up” athletes and could still hang with the young men.
Let’s break down their team.
- Noah Ohlsen, a Miami native and a 10 time CrossFit Games competitor, won WZA Miami individually in 2015, 2016 and 2017 and was on the podium in 2019 and 2020.
- Travis Mayer was on the individual podium in 2020 and placed top 10 in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
- Ohlsen and Mayer were on a team with Will Moorad in 2018 that won the teams division.
- Chandler Smith, the third teammate making up ‘The Boys’, was on a team with Ohlsen and Tola Morakinyo last year and made the podium.
- Additionally in 2024, Mayer was on a team with Pat Vellner and BKG and they took 5th.
- In 2022 the exact same team – Ohlsen, Mayer and Smith – won the teams division.
- In 2023 they took third.
It’s a lot to keep up with, and that’s the point. Their experience competing both together and separately at this competition was evident in every single event this weekend, as they tackled synchro movements and executed team strategies effortlessly. The history of this team is unmatched and the fact that they are not only competing at the highest level, but took the W, is nothing short of incredible.
Starting Hot
The Boys started off hot with a 3rd place in the Overhead Squad event, a solid finish for the team in a barbell only strength event. They went on to dominate throughout the weekend, taking no finishes outside the top five. Their experience was evident in their ability to communicate on the fly, transition flawlessly in the more complex programming events and last but not least, move the infamous worm with ease.
Despite having a dominant and smooth performance all weekend, the field was stacked and the competition was tight. The Boys went into the final event with only a 6 point lead. They needed to secure third or better to win the competition. However, they could not take third and let Tres Leches, a team made up of Gui Malheiros, Jorge Fernandez and Saxon Panchik, win.
Final Drama
The final event consisted of 150 ping pong wall balls, 75 synchro toes to bar, and a worm lunge to finish it off. When The Boys were third off the wall balls, things started to get interesting. The standings were so close they couldn’t afford to let Tres Leches get far ahead. When The Boys, Tres Leches, and Go WOD all hopped off their toes to bar within 3 seconds of each other, everyone knew this was going to be an epic race to the finish.
Tres Leches started lunging with the worm at a fast pace, leading the field, and it began to look like they might run away with the event. The crowd was electric and everyone was on their feet. This was the race everyone had been waiting and hoping for. At the halfway turn around point both teams flipped the worm to change directions without setting it down and began their last lunge back down the floor at the exact same time. The teams were going lunge for lunge, in lanes next to each other, when halfway down the floor Tres Leches received a no rep, forcing them to drop the worm and pick it back up. It was a done deal, The Boys were running away with both an event win, and the Elite Men’s Team division win. As they dropped the worm and ran across the finish line, the commentator roared into the microphone, calling The Boys the Kings of Miami Beach.
In a post competition interview, Mayer states “For those that happened to tag all three of us and say that we were washed up and didn’t stand a chance out here, top of the podium speaks for itself, so how bout that?” looking directly into the camera with a vengeance. He had something to prove, and he knew they had quieted the doubters.
Confirmed: Sunday is for The Boys.
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