After twice falling short, third was the lucky charm for Jamie Greene at the Reebok CrossFit Games in Madison, Wisconsin, last weekend.
The Abu Dhabi-based athlete clinched third in the overall women’s standings, finishing 220 points behind winner Tia-Clair Toomey and just 25 points behind second-placed Kristin Holte.
Greene, who trains at CrossFit Yas in the UAE capital, made her debut in the team’s division in 2016, finishing third, before placing eighth and 11th as an individual in 2017 and 2018 respectively.
But the Dunedin native, who has been living in the Emirates since 2014, looked a class apart of her rivals over the four-day event last weekend, notching third in the First Cut, fourth in the Sprint Couplet, third in Mary, fourth in Split Triplet, fourth in Swim Paddle and second in The Standard.
Speaking to Sport360 after returning to the Emirates earlier in the week, Greene said: “It definitely felt different to other years. You get back home, you rest for a little and then you’re back to square one again because you realise what you want and need to work on.
“I had a lot of weaknesses to work on, smaller things like the mental game, pushing through when you do get tired, changing your training so you can handle the volume when it comes to competition time.”
With twelve gruelling events taking place over four days at the Alliant Energy Center, recovering both mentally and physically comes down to fine margins, especially if the athletes are to get the best out of their vast talents in each workout.
“You have to manage your energy. Everyone feels like that, you can have a bit more energy if you spend a bit of downtime between events resting,” said Greene. “And being smart about how you use your energy, whether that’s cutting down time on social media, talking to people or walking around doing stuff you don’t need to do.
“You know what you’re there for so if you can focus on that then you have much more energy for your events.”
Gymnastics has always been a key strength for Greene since an early age, but other workouts from a strength element require some extra work. With so many different workouts and routines to practice and manage, it’s important to cover all bases effectively in advance of competition.
“We go through different blocks throughout the year. I do basic strength work for a while. I just get the body used to a lot of volume. You build up volume throughout the year and then when it gets to competition time you break it down as if it was an event,” she said.
“You hit each workout like it’s competition intensity. That’s the big difference instead of just cruising throughout the workout.”
Knowing she can now shine against the best in the world, Greene’s podium spot is sure to provide additional firepower to her training over the next few months as she attempts to replicate another strong display at the CrossFit Games in 2020.
“You need to take note of the little things,” she said. “The importance of recovery so you can hit every workout harder. Going into training with a purpose, know what to achieve in that position instead of just going through the motions. I’ll need to increase the running and strength blocks and hopefully to come back next year.”
