Many of the notable names in the elite CrossFit space have stamped their ticket to the 2021 CrossFit Games Semifinals events set to occur both virtually and live on each of the six continents recognized by CrossFit HQ. Among the women, four-time Fittest Woman on Earth® Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr continued her dominance with her first Open win and a first-place finish in the Oceania Quarterfinals. Amanda Barnhart, Dani Speegle, Mallory O’Brien, Emma Cary, and Brooke Wells make up the top five (in that order) of the North American Quarterfinals.
Wells, who also finished in fifth place at the 2020 CrossFit Games, switched coaches for the 2021 season. She’s now under the guidance of Shane Orr and is training alongside Toomey-Orr. But she is not the only member of the Wells family who qualified for the Semifinals. Her twin sister, Sydney Wells, also earned a spot in her respective Semifinal event via a 69th-place finish in the North America Quarterfinal.
Editor’s Note: At the time this article was written, CrossFit HQ was still finalizing the 2021 Quarterfinals results. This article will be updated if any of the rankings mentioned change.
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[Related: Check Out the 2021 CrossFit Games Quarterfinals Results]
2021 marked Sydney Wells’s fourth appearance in the CrossFit Open. Her 528th rank was the second-best Open finish of her career. Her previous finishes were 703rd in 2020, 522nd in 2019, and 2,085th in 2013.
Here are Sydney Wells stats from the five tests that comprised the Quarterfinals:
- Test One — 64th place, 7:42
- Test Two —214th place, 346 reps
- Test Three — 92nd place, 10:46
- Test Four — 319th place, 230 pounds
- Test Five — 255th place, 4:35
- Total — 944 points, 69th place
Sydney Wells’ athletic background, aside from CrossFit, includes four years of at the University of Missouri.
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The Wells sisters are not the only siblings asserting their elite fitness on the 2021 CrossFit season. The brothers Panchik — Scott, Saxon, and Spencer — are also at the top of the men’s leaderboard. They ranked second, seventh, and 1oth respectively in the North America Quarterfinals. There were even featured in a head-to-head-to-head battle during the 21.3 and 21.4 announcements in the third and final week of the 2021 Open.
Scott is both the eldest brother and the most decorated in CrossFit accomplishments. Scott has three fourth-place finishes — 2012, 2013, and 2019. He’s finished in the top six at the Games on seven occasions.
Additionally, the Smith brothers — Ben, Alec, and Dane — have also qualified to make the Semifinals a family affair. Dane Smith, the youngest brother, finished the Quarterfinals ranked 78th overall in North America. If he advances through the Semifinals, 2021 would mark his CrossFit Games debut.
Alec Smith, the middle brother, finished in 59th overall with 816 points. Alec has two appearances at the Games as an individual — 2017 and 2018. He finished in 36th and 25th, respectively, before joining CrossFit Krypton for a runner-up finish in the Teams division in 2019.
Twenty-five ranks up is the 2015 Fittest Man on Earth®, Ben Smith, in 24th with 461 points. It would be Ben’s ninth appearance at the Games if he were to qualify for them in 2021. In addition to his title, he has a silver-medal finish (2016) and a bronze-medal finish (2013).
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2021 CrossFit Semifinals
The Semifinals will span four weeks — May 28 through June 20, 2021 — and will consist of 11 events across six continents (all but Antarctica) in person, with three taking place online (The Atlas Games, German Throwdown, and the Catchall Virtual Event).
The Wells sisters will each vie for one of the 38 slots available via the Semifinals to qualify for the 2021 NOBULL CrossFit Games. If either of them misses by a narrow enough margin in the Semifinals, they will get one last opportunity for at the Last Chance Qualifier event that will push two more women through to the Games. Brooke seems to have her sights set on improving upon her 2020 finish and step onto the podium. If Sydney were to advance through the Semifinals, it will be her CrossFit Games debut.
Featured image: @sydneywells
