Jake Douglas is on top of the world.
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The Snake CrossFit proprietor has just returned from winning the International Cup division at the prestigious Wodapalooza Fitness-Festival in Miami.
A new category for the festival, the division was for all athletes competing from outside of America.
Describing the experience as eye-opening, inspiring and amazing, the Pirates and NSW Country star rated the win as satisfying as anything he achieved on the rugby field.
“I gave up footy for it (CrossFit),” Douglas said.
Not that he ever imagined he’d be standing on top of the podium, so soon anyway, at an event as acclaimed as Wodapalooza.
“It was super surprising,” he said.
“I didn’t even think I was going to qualify.”
Just to compete at Miami he had to go through an online qualifier.
“We had to do two work-outs a week for three weeks,” Douglas said.
From those they were scored by video submission.
Douglas on his scores also qualified for the RX division, but elected to compete in the international division.
He was though initially a bit hesitant to go.
“I couldn’t afford it,” he said.
“Then I was lucky enough that some businesses in town sponsored me.”
Pirates Rugby Club, Viatek Tamworth, Dietz Family Trust, SJT Electrical, Ray White Tamworth, Paula Peterson Travel and Design Hair Studio all helped him out, for which he is very grateful.
“I wouldn’t have been going if not for them,” he said.
The festival itself went for three days and drew over 1500 competitors.
They performed two workouts a day, which covered a range of activities from pull ups, to rope climbing to an 80kg sandbag carry.
“The way a CrossFit event works is they’re trying to find the most well-rounded athlete,” Douglas said.
You can’t just be super strong, or super fast, he said. It’s about being consistent through all aspects of fitness.
Douglas’ worst finish was fourth and he went into the final day with a handy points lead.
“In the last event there were three separate scores. I knew if I won the first event and didn’t come last in the other two I knew I was in with a shot,” he said.
It was his first competition as such and really opened his eyes up to the worldwide community, with the event also featuring youth and adaptive divisions.
Next on the radar is the CrossFit Games.
That will be run over various stages and finish with the top five in Australia going over to compete in the World Crossfit Games.
“That’s the end goal for me,” Douglas said.
