Australia’s top CrossFit athletes in Orange for Masters League Games

Orange athlete Kerry Rodwell is ready for the excitement of competing on home soil when the 2024 Masters League Games is held at the Naylor Pavilion at Orange Showgrounds from October 18 to 20.

The marquee CrossFit event will attract up to 1200 athletes from across the world to the Colour City.

It is the first time the premier functional fitness competition in Australia has been held in NSW, so it is an honour for Orange to be hosting.

Kerry will compete in the 50-54 years female ‘Warrior’ category.

Orange will also have Tanya Koster and Gary Tarr competing together in the 45-54 years Teams ‘Hero’ category.

The Masters League Games is a licensed CrossFit held for athletes aged 35 to 70.

“It’s awesome to be able to compete at home,” Kerry said.

“Sharing our facilities and our town with people from all across Australia and the world, it’s pretty cool.”

Kerry has been doing CrossFit since late 2016, starting at the HomeFront CrossFit Gym which recently closed.

After being coaxed into some personal training classes by a friend, Kerry enjoyed the different movements and structures. After a two-week stint she was hooked.

“The variety of skills and movements that you do, you don’t get bored with it,” Kerry said.

“The community environment that it offers is great too... people of different ages, different professions... there was no judgement if you couldn’t do a movement that someone else could do well. It offers a lot of inclusivity.”

She started competing at Masters League in 2019, which is a tournament that gives the “more-seasoned athletes” a chance to compete.

In 2020 Kerry competed in the Masters League 45-49 years category, one of three Orange athletes to take part in the COVID-affected event where people did the workouts in their local gyms. Orange’s other two competitors were David Kable and Tanya Koster.

Lithgow’s Chris Kable, the brother of David Kable, has competed recently at the elite-level CrossFit Games in the 45-49 years category.

The Masters allows for a range of competitors.

To qualify for Orange, Australian entrants first complete an on-line qualifier in their local gym where they had to finish in the top five of their state to progress.

The top five in each state (for each age group and category) then competed in regional finals.

Kerry attended the regional qualifier at Tuggerah on the Central Coast in May and finished in the top two in the 50-54 years female ‘Warrior’ category.

There are Solider (beginner), Warrior (intermediate) and Hero (advanced) categories in each age bracket.

This allows people of different skill levels to compete on a big stage.

Kerry also explained one section of the competition includes a strongman workout which includes heavy dead balls and sandbags, walking with a yoke across your back, “farmer’s carries” with big weights, and also using a strongman log used in strongman competitions.

+

Competitors have their abilities tested across a range of modalities.

One example of CrossFit is the Fight Gone Bad discipline, where people perform five repetitions of a minute each of wall-balls, of sumo deadlift high-pulls, box jumps, push pressers and rowing. The 25 minutes of physical exertion is testing, even for the ultra-fit.

There is also the Filthy 50, where athletes perform 50 repetitions of a range of movements including box jumps, jumping pull-ups, kettle-bell swings, walking lunges, knees-to-elbows, push presses, back extensions, wall-balls, burpees and double-unders.

So, what can the casual observer at Naylor Pavilion expect?

“You’ll see camaraderie,” Kerry said.

“Even in competition... you’ll see people cheering on other people to finish something or do something they would not normally be able to do. That’s a big part of our competition.”

Kerry played competitive hockey, touch football and basketball.

She represented the University of New England at the University Games in hockey and played in Brisbane, Toowoomba and first grade in Orange, lining up for Emus and then Confederates.

She enjoys the chance to compete but not have to commit every week like you would in a sports side.

+

Joe Riego, based in Melbourne, is the owner and director of Masters League CrossFit.

He is delighted to be coming to Orange and thanked Ben Keegan and the team at Orange City Council for their support along with Wentworth Golf Club, where the after-party will be held on Sunday, October 20.

Events will be held each day from the Friday to Sunday.

It will be Joe’s first visit to Orange.

“This will be brand new to me,” he said.

“Orange were so accommodating. Ben (Keegan) and the team at (Orange City) Council have been just so accommodating for what we wanted and what we wanted to achieve.

“They were just so easy to work with. They have worked with us to make this work.

“I give them a lot of kudos. The Wentworth have also been very good to us. We look forward to coming to Orange.”