Valley athletes do well at crossfit regional games

OKANAGAN – Crossfit athletes from the North and Central Okanagan recently posted some stellar results during the gruelling West Crossfit Regionals in Tacoma, Wash.

Crossfit, a type of workout that combines Olympic weight-lifting with elements of gymnastics and interval cardio, emerged out of California in 2002. Participants in the regional games must complete seven different workouts over a three-day period. An example of the type of workouts the athetes endured are a 250-foot handstand walk. Another was 75 snatches, an Olympic weight-lifting move, with a 75-lb. barbell for men or a 55-lb. barbell for women.

Brent Fikowski, 24, took 7th overall from amongst the 40 athletes who competed at the regionals, the top valley result.

"Each workout was hard but for different reasons," Fikowski says. "I was probably the most fatigued after event two — 45 thrusters and 27 rope climbs in a short period of time. It took a lot out of me."

Fikowski says this year's format change where the top 20 athletes from Canada West region went up against the top 20 from the Pacific Northwest region of the U.S. made it that much harder.

"This meant that the lowest ranked athletes were better than last year, and there were more top-level contenders fighting for podium spots." 

Jeremy Meredith, 28, placed 12th while his life and business partner Deanna Fester, 29, placed 29th. The co-owners of Crossfit Vernon not only worked together but worked out together.

"I think we have a special relationship to actually able to do that," Meredith says. "We have coaches on staff and that takes a lot off our plates. It helped having our workload alleviated."

Meredith has qualified for the Crossfit Games twice betore in 2011 and 2012, but says the depth of the competition keeps growing.

"Before you had to worry about eight to ten guys. The rest were filler. Now there are 40 guys who could potentially win any event."

Cole Bernier, 21, placed 21st overall. Bernier is 6’ and weighs in at 208 lbs.

On the women’s side, Erica Livett, 34, took 22nd place. Livett is not affiliated with a local gym. She is 5’8” and weight 165 lbs.

Crossfit Regional participants must qualify during the Crossfit Open, held in February. All crossfitters are eligible to enter the open games but only the top five in each area are invited to the regionals.

To contact the reporter for this story, email John McDonald at jmcdonald@infonews.ca or call 250-808-0143. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.