What to Expect from the 2022 CrossFit Games Last Chance Qualifier

Photograph Credit score: CrossFit LLC

With the second iteration of the Final Likelihood Qualifier quick approaching, right this moment we dive into what rivals can anticipate based mostly on what we discovered from final 12 months and what we’ve already seen this 12 months within the earlier elements of the season.

2021 LCQ:

The primary 12 months of the LCQ featured 4 exercises and a complete of seven actions. Each single a type of actions had already confirmed up in some iteration at a earlier stage of the season:

• Rowing: Beforehand seen within the Quarterfinals and the web Semifinals
• Grasp Dumbbell Snatch: DB snatch within the Open, barbell snatch in Quarters and Semis
• Burpees: Burpee field soar overs within the Open and Quarters, burpees in Semis
• Double Unders: Appeared in each stage (Open, Quarters, and Semis)
• Squat Cleans: Heavy clear within the Open, Db dangle cleans at Quarters, barbell clear (and jerks) in Semis
• Legless Rope Climbs: Beforehand within the on-line Semifinals
• Deadlift: A part of the Barbell Complicated within the Open, dumbbell deadlifts in Semis

Resulting from COVID restrictions final season, CrossFit was answerable for programming an entire on-line Semifinal which took quite a lot of doable unused actions off the desk for the LCQ. This 12 months that was not the case, CrossFit solely programmed two of the six Semifinal exercises and due to this fact has slightly extra leeway ought to they need to incorporate unused actions into this 12 months’s LCQ.

What We Don’t Anticipate to See:

Many of the actions on this checklist received’t be seen within the LCQ for one (or extra) of three causes:

1. They’ve already been examined extensively at an earlier stage of the season.
2. There isn’t any want to check the capability for them at a stage with solely 4 (possibly 5) exercises that ought to demand a increased barrier for entry type check.
   • i.e. Wall walks would get replaced by handstand strolling or a excessive ability/demand handstand push up variation.
3. There are nonetheless loads of untested actions that might spotlight and/or expose athletes at this stage of competitors.

• GHD Sit-Ups
• Shuttle Runs
• Wall Walks
• DB Snatch
• Bar Going through Burpee
• Ring Muscle Up (on common just below 30 of those have been examined at most Semis)
• Strolling Lunges
• Kipping Handstand push-ups
• Deficit Handstand push-ups
• Pistols
• Rope Climbs
• Wall Balls with typical weights and heights (20/14 to 10’/9’)
• Field Bounce Overs at typical heights (24/20)

Actions That Very Effectively Might be Chosen:

This checklist largely consists of issues that haven’t been examined but this season by CrossFit particularly, or have been examined in a really low quantity. A majority of them, particularly in sure combos, would fulfill standards two and three from above (increased ability barrier, and untested actions that might expose athletes at this stage of competitors).

• Overhead Squats
• Grasp Snatch (barbell)
• Clear
• Thrusters (dumbbell or barbell)
• Bar Muscle Ups
• Toes to Bar
• Chest to Bar Pull-Ups
• Strict Handstand Push-ups
• Strict Deficit Handstand Push-ups
• Rowing
• Wall Balls (20/14) to 11’/10’ or (30/20) to 10’
• Burpees to 12 inch goal
• Farmers Carry with Dumbbells
• Double Unders (large units)
• Field Bounce Overs (with or with out burpees) to 30/24 inch field

Based mostly on final 12 months, we’d anticipate about half of this group of actions to point out up.

Energy Exercise or No?

One of many large speaking factors of final 12 months’s LCQ was the inclusion of a 3 rep max deadlift as one in all solely 4 assessments. In fact we all know athletes must be robust to compete on the Video games, however is it crucial to check it in isolation at this stage with so few exercises at this stage of testing?

Everybody of those athletes has already been required to exhibit energy in two particular assessments CrossFit has programmed:

• The opposite complete from Quarterfinals (one rep maxes for Clear, Bench Press, and Overhead Squat)
• The Barbell Complicated from Semifinals (three cleans, two entrance squats, one shoulder to overhead)

As has been mentioned and highlighted many occasions, there are different methods to check energy. Don’t be shocked if the ‘energy’ check is masked slightly otherwise than the very apparent three rep max deadlift from final season.

How Many Single Modality Assessments to Anticipate?

One other level of rivalry with final 12 months’s model of the LCQ was that two of the 4 assessments have been single modality (three rep max deadlift, 100 burpees to 12 inch goal). Once more the query arises, when so many excessive degree athletes are vying for under two spots do we’d like half the assessments to be so particular?

Considering this 12 months’s latest stage of competitors, the web Age Group Semifinals, it appears the reply to that query is perhaps sure. In a really comparable nature to final 12 months’s LCQ, half the assessments on the age group semis this 12 months have been single modality:

• Check 3: Snatch Ladder for reps
• Check 5: Wall Ball (“Demise By”-style)
• Check 6: 1 rep max clear and jerk

Contemplating the sample that had been established final season, and continued into the age group semifinals this season, it appears CrossFit does place a fairly excessive emphasis on the expression of health by way of single modality assessments as a part of the qualifying course of for the Video games.

To not be ignored is that the 2 pre-programmed Semifinals exercises have been additionally for all intensive functions single modality (legless rope climbs; barbell complicated).

Anticipated Format:

Bearing in mind all the things we’ve laid out up so far, right here’s an outline of what we’re anticipating from the 2022 LCQ:

• 4-5 assessments; most probably 4
• Considered one of them will likely be single modality in nature (hopefully not lifting); presumably a rowing check just like what we noticed in stage one of many 2020 CrossFit Video games. Rowing has solely proven up for the people at Quarterfinals, and it wasn’t a essential a part of that exercise.
• A energy check that’s ascending in nature coupled with one or two different actions that we haven’t seen a lot of this 12 months but (double unders, tall field soar overs, toes to bar, chest to bars, or bar muscle ups are main candidates)
• A check just like age group semifinal exercise 4 (which included ghd sit ups, handstand strolling and bar muscle ups). Solely we’d anticipate GHD sit-ups to be omitted since there’s no want for the redundancy after Quarterfinals, and so they might substitute toes to bar fairly simply).
• A exercise with heavy wall balls to a ten foot goal for everybody.
  • On a current episode of Get With the Programming, Chase Ingraham informs that Adrian Bozman needed to maintain the wall ball top at ten ft for the age group on-line semifinals with a 30 and 20 pound wall ball; the one motive he didn’t is as a result of he wasn’t positive folks had entry to that.
  • Nonetheless, it’s way more secure to imagine that the athletes within the LCQ do have entry to that, making it a fairly good guess to point out up.

The large image: We’re solely in 12 months two of this format, so definitely there’s nonetheless lots we don’t know. Nonetheless, this stage of the season is each thrilling and important. There are over 30 women and men who’ve already confirmed their capability to be distinctive this 12 months by way of three phases of testing. With so many athletes who have been so near qualifying by way of Semis on this area, it’s essential to get the programming proper right here. We’ve given it our greatest effort, now to see how properly it matches up with what CrossFit rolls out for the athletes.