PORTRAITS IN MOTION Photography by Kieran Kesner

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 1 Capturing the beauty of athletic movement through the eyes of a first-time attendee to the CrossFit Games is a challenging task. Award- winning photojournalist Kieran Kesner attended the 2015 Reebok CrossFit Games with that goal in mind.

Cover: Stacie Tovar sprints to her next barbell during the Snatch Speed Ladder event.

Left: Jon Pera won Snatch Speed Ladder by blazing through bars loaded from 190 to 275 lb. in the three-round elimination tournament.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 2 Camille Leblanc-Bazinet spends time in the surf on her paddleboard during a practice session days prior to the Pier Paddle event that opened the Games. At Hermosa Beach on the first day of competition, she took 10th place with a time that would have placed her 10th in the men’s division as well.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 3 CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 4 Previous: Annie Thorisdottir dives under a wave during the Pier Paddle event.

Above: Team athletes climb the stairs during the berm-run portion of Earth Worm on Day 2 of the team competition.

Right: Roy Gamboa deadlifts two 200-lb. kettlebells during the final individual event, Pedal to the Metal 2.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 5 CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 6 Previous: Games rookie Brooke Ence attempts to negotiate the pegboard during Pedal to the Metal 1.

Left: In 2010, Graham Holmberg placed 16th in Sandbag Move on his way to winning the Games. This year, he placed fifth in Sandbag 2015, a variation of the original event.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 7 Left: Elijah Muhammad moves ahead of Ben Smith and in the semifinal round of Snatch Speed Ladder.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 8 CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 9 Previous: Individual female competitors jump the Tennis Stadium wall to begin Sandbag 2015.

Right: Dan Bailey deadlifts a 205-lb. barbell on his way to a sixth-place finish in Heavy DT. Fans selected the heavier load via Twitter to create the Games version of the Hero workout.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 10 The pegboard in Pedal to the Metal 1 proved challenging to many athletes. Most of the female competitors, including Jenn Jones (below) and Alessandra Pichelli (right), could not complete a single ascent, while Margaux Alvarez and Amanda Goodman had little trouble with the board.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 11 Kristin Holte kicks up to the wall for handstand push-ups in Pedal to the Metal 2. She finished the event tied for 19th.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 12 Led by four-time CrossFit Games individual champion Rich Froning, CrossFit Mayhem Freedom edged out CrossFit Milford by a small margin to win the 2015 Affiliate Cup.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 13 Froning and his CrossFit Mayhem Freedom teammates receive congratulations from Dave Castro, Director of the CrossFit Games, after finishing third in the final event to take the Affiliate Cup by 5 points.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 14 Above: Mat Fraser recovers on the sand at Hermosa Beach following his 12th-place finish in the Pier Paddle event.

Right: Former CrossFit Games champion Sam Briggs rests against an LED display after winning Murph by more than a minute.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 15 Rebecca Voigt—the only individual athlete to compete in eight consecutive CrossFit Games—collapses after placing 19th in Sandbag 2015. She was third in Sandbag Move in 2010.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 16 Kevin Simons finds some shade in the Soccer Stadium after finishing 31st in Murph with a time of 50:27.71.

CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 17 CROSSFIT JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 18 Previous: Katrin Tanja Davidsdottir takes a selfie with fans after being declared the Fittest Woman on Earth at the 2015 Reebok CrossFit Games.

Left: Ben Smith is congratulated by Dan Bailey following Pedal to the Metal 2. Smith finished fourth in the final event to win the Games and earn the title Fittest Man on Earth.

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