Top 20 Male Individual Games Athletes - Point System

[emilyd]

I got into an argument about who had a more impressive CrossFit resume so I put this together... a points system ranking of the best all-time Male Crossfit Games Athletes (hope to do the woman's side as well). We all know Mat and Rich are the 1 and 2. But who is the 8th? What about the top 20? Thought it would be fun to try to answer that. Tell me whatcha think!

How'd I Do It?

Note 1 - What competitions did I consider?

Only the Crossfit Games were considered. I think there is an argument for considering things like the Open and Regionals/Sanctionals. I decided against it as the Games are the pinnacle of the sport. That is where we ultimately judge success and failure.

Note 2 - All the Games? Or just modern?

I considered "tiering" Games by year so that performance in the 2018 games is more valuable than the 2009 games. It's quite clear there is a different level of fitness now compared to the early days. However, deciding how to tier each year was too difficult. While it's clear there is a huge difference between the very early and modern games, it's not clear where the "line" is. How much more impressive is a 2017 games win vs 2013? I don't know how to answer that. What I decided to do was only consider the 2010 games and on. The '07, '08, '09 games are just too different from today. This isn't perfect, Graham Holmberg's 1st place in 2010 is a completely different accomplishment than any of Fraser's. But we do this in other sports too, we talk about Bill Russel and Jerry West as all-time greats when in reality if they were transported to the modern-day NBA LeBron would dominate them. So take Jason Kahlipa and Chis Speiler's ranking with a grain of salt. I also only considered athletes who had competed at the games at least 3 times. (sorry Medieros, who would have tied for 20th)

Note 3 - Point System

There is a tone of different ways to do this. I prioritized wins, podium finishes, and top 10 finishes. The grouping towards the bottom is mostly due to laziness, made things a lot easier.

Here is the breakdown...

1st =30pts 2nd = 20pts 3rd = 15pts 4th = 10pts 5th = 9pts

6th = 8pts 7th = 7pts 8th = 6pts 9th = 5pts 10th = 4pts

11th-15th = 3pts 16th-20th = 2pts 21st-30th = 1pt

The Rankings

1. M. Fraser 190
2. R. Froning 140
3. B. Smith 107
4. S. Panchik 66
5. B. Gudmundsson 61
6. P. Vellner 57
7. J. Khalipa 56
8. N. Olsen 55
9. B. Fikowski 44
10. G. Holmberg 44
11. J. Bridges 41
12. D. Bailey 39
13. C. Sager 32
14. S. Kwant 27
15. J. Heppner 24
16. L. Hogberg 22
17. K. Kasperbaur 20
18. C. Speiler 20
19. J. Koski 17
20. A. Anderson 15

 

[dawn16]

@emilyd The recency bias leaves out the concept that, although recent games are far more difficult, recent athletes are also better suited for those competitions.

Remember, Mikko Salo was a madman for doing multiple pieces in a day, but now that’s your typical Saturday for a lot of folks not good enough to qualify for a sanctional.

The Games have always reflected what it took to win them, if that makes sense.

 

[emilyd]

@dawn16 Totally fair. Mikko Salo is the guy that should probably be on here that isn't.

 

[casterberry]

@emilyd You got in an argument over CrossFit competitors? There’s your first mistake mate.

 

[emilyd]

@casterberry Disagreement with a friend is probably more accurate.

 

[romanqueen1]

@emilyd Upvoted for quality and effort. I think this is cool.

 

[abzin44]

@emilyd Interesting to see kasperbauer (sp?) he was supposed to be a big deal then kinda faded... turns out he actually was pretty good haha

 

[emilyd]

@abzin44 Looks like he went the masters route. Two 1st and a 10th in 35-39 age group.

 

[ericguitarman]

@emilyd You don't have sex a lot, do you?

 

[emilyd]

@ericguitarman Wow. You seem fun.

 

[humbill]

@emilyd Don't worry about him. Dude's just a troll. Think your ranking is interestering and "confirms" my own personal eye test.

 

[ericguitarman]

@emilyd A simple confirmation would have sufficed.

 

[nucc]

@ericguitarman Having a bad day, bud?