The United Kingdom has produced some exceptional athletes over the years. From 2013 Fittest Woman on Earth Sam Briggs to current UK #1 Zack George, some of the biggest names on the CrossFit circuit have been born and raised in Blighty.
The heavyweights of UK CrossFit have been showing up to dominate the competition on a global stage for some time now — and there’s a lot we can learn from them; from their training mindset to how they balance family and work. Here are just 8 British athletes to follow and learn from.
Zack George
- Age: 30
- Weight: 97kg
- Height: 182cm
Born in Leicestershire, UK, Zack George has been making headlines in the CrossFit world over the last few years. In 2020 he earned the title of Fittest Man in the UK, and was 26th in the world overall. No small feat from an athlete who describes himself as “massively overweight” as a child.
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After being bribed with a PlayStation by his father to get into shape, Zack started to devote his life to sport and physical improvement. As a teenager, he represented Leicester County in rugby, squash and table tennis; before coming across a clip of the 2013 CrossFit Games on YouTube and falling in love.
“I just loved the look of it. You’ve got to be strong, you’ve got to be fit. It really appealed straight away. As soon as I saw it, I thought, ‘That’s what I want to do. I want to get to the Games.’”
Since then Zack’s CrossFit career has taken off, earning him the nickname ‘Silverback’ for his intense dedication to the sport. Zack opened his own CrossFit affiliate — CrossFit BFG — in Leicester in 2015, devoting all his time to his dream of competing in the Individual Division at the Games. Zack qualified for the European CrossFit Regionals in 2018, and then placed first at the UK CrossFit Open 2020, earning himself a ticket to the 2020 CrossFit Games.
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Unfortunately due to the sudden arrival of the Coronavirus pandemic, his dreams of participating at the Games were put on hold as the number of participants was sharply cut — but that doesn’t mean he’s resting in his laurels. Still training 6 days a week, Zack is getting ready to attack the Games once again. He is also about to release his first book titled Start Where Others Stop which is currently available to pre-order.
Elliot Simmonds
- Age: 27
- Weight: 90kg
- Height: 185cm
Right on the heels of Zack George is Elliot Simmonds, who held the title of the UK’s Fittest Man in 2019 and is currently the British #2. Raised in Kidderminster, Elliot has always described himself as active. While attending University in Cardiff and playing competitive rugby, the future number one attended CrossFit classes with his mum, and while initially unimpressed, it wouldn’t take long for Elliot to be bitten by the CrossFit bug.
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After competing in London in 2014, Elliot was invited to train and coach with CrossFit Yas; a team based out of Vogue Fitness in Abu Dhabi. He relocated to the UAE in the summer of 2014, which took him to his first Games in the Teams Division with CrossFit Yas in 2016. After placing 3rd as part of a team, Elliot set his sights on the Games as an Individual.
Since getting his first taste of the podium, Elliot has worked hard and it shows. He ranked #1 in the UAE during the 2018 CrossFit Open and followed it up by becoming the Fittest Man in the UK in 2019. He has competed at the Games twice, coming in 26th in 2018, and increasing his rank to 19th in 2019.
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Elliot now trains full time in Cardiff. He is also married to 4x Games NZ athlete Jamie Simmonds (née Greene). When reflecting on his time with Yas, Simmonds shared an inspiring series of Instagram posts; highlighting consistency, patience, accountability and intensity in training — but also, fun:
“It’s ok to like different types of exercise, there’s no right or wrong way to get healthy. So if you love going to Zumba then go dance your little legs off and don’t feel bad about it.”
Murtaza Nadeem
- Age: 20
- Weight: 84kg
- Height: 175cm
One young athlete to keep an eye on in the next few years is former UK Boys (16-17) #1 Murtaza Nadeem. Raised in Rotherham, Murtaza took up boxing as a teenager before switching to CrossFit at 16. The move was a smart one, as demonstrated by his tenacity in the sport at such a young age.
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Now old enough to qualify as an Individual Men’s competitor, Murtaza “Taz” Nadeem is eyeing the world’s biggest CrossFit competition — the CrossFit Games. In 2018 he placed 23rd in the UK Men’s division, which is no small feat given he was just 18 at the time. In the two years since he’s been focused on training, which has paid off. In 2020 Murtaza became the Fittest Man in Afghanistan thanks to dual UK and Afghan citizenship.
As a Muslim competitor, Murtaza explains how he balances training during the month of Ramadan.
“We try to eat as many carbs as we can and make it as tasty as we can as well. It’s not actually as bad as you think, because I am sleeping a lot more during the day and working out at night, which is the exact same as if I was doing it in the morning and sleeping at night.”
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His success in the 2020 Open would have sent him to the Games in Madison, but due to the pandemic that dream would be put on hold, which means he’s keen to make an impression in the upcoming season.
Sam Briggs
- Age: 38
- Weight: 135lb
- Height: 170cm
The UK Master’s Fittest Woman needs little introduction. Known as ‘The Engine,’ the 6x CrossFit Games competitor and 2013 Fittest Woman on Earth is regarded internationally as one of the heavyweights of the sport. She was the first UK-born athlete to make it to the Games — let alone win it.
A firefighter for a decade with the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, Samantha “Sam” Briggs started her sporting career as duathlon and triathlon competitor, but in 2009 the Leeds native took up CrossFit and never looked back.
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She joined a box just as CrossFit was starting to gain some steam in the UK, and shortly after qualified for the 2010 Games, coming in 19th overall and feeding her hunger for greater success. That was until a serious knee injury took her out of action in 2012. The injury was devastating, but also a huge learning experience:
“I had to sit back and focus on some of my weaknesses. There was a long time where I couldn’t do anything with my legs, so I had to focus on gymnastics. Then coming back from the injury, I had to work on my mechanics and make sure that my movement patterns were more efficient and that my technique was better.”
After spending a year out to focus on rehab, Sam qualified for the Games once again. This time nothing was going to stop her achieving her dream, as she beat out Lindsey Valenzuela to become the 2013 Fittest Woman on Earth.
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Despite having “aged out” of the Individual Women’s Division in 2016, Sam has continued to compete in the both Masters and Individual Divisions. For the last four years she has held the title of the UK’s Fittest Woman over 35 — and isn’t close to stopping yet.
Megan Lovegrove
- Age: 32
- Weight: 65kg
- Height: 158cm
As the current UK National Champion, Megan Lovegrove is looking to emulate that success in 2021. The Cumbria native is a 4x Regionals competitor, physiotherapist and coach who has spent the last 6 years competing. Prior to her UK National title, Megan spent two years in Singapore, ranking first in the country in the 2018 Regionals.
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Megan discovered CrossFit after graduating from Leeds University in 2014, training at one of the early CrossFit boxes in the city. After three years of hard work, she was invited to be part of Team JST who were putting together a team for the 2017 Games. After placing 15th with JST at the Games, Megan switched her mindset to becoming an Individual competitor.
She currently lives and trains in the Lake District, where she’s a huge advocate of the great outdoors, leveraging the stunning lakes and Fells into her training and recovery.
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Kelly Friel
- Age: 43
- Weight: 72kg
- Height: 170cm
Dominating the 40 – 44 UK Women’s Masters Division, Kelly Friel is not an athlete to be underestimated. Not only are her achievements in the CrossFit circuit impressive, but they were achieved while raising two daughters and holding down a job (and co-owning CrossFit Southampton)!
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Kelly got into CrossFit through her friend and co-Box owner Ben Allen in 2012. With hardly any competitive sports prior to CrossFit, Kelly strongly believes that “anyone can CrossFit in some capacity regardless of their history” and that she is testament to that.
Her athletic career has gone from strength-to-strength since those first months at CrossFit Southampton, with Kelly qualifying for the Games in her category in both 2018 and 2019 — and placing 2nd both years.
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She also qualified for the 2020 Games, but due to the Pandemic was unable to participate along with hundreds of other athletes worldwide. Kelly now has her eyes fixed on 2021.
Charlotte Spence
- Age: 34
- Weight: 66kg
- Height: 5’00”
Former Military Police Officer Charlotte “Lottie” Spence is another British CrossFit athlete that’s been steadily gaining attention in the last few years. Over her last five years of CrossFit, Charlotte has been climbing the ranks of the Open; from 36th in the Individual Women’s Division in 2015 to the UK’s #2 in 2020.
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Charlotte entered the Army at 19 after leaving school. She served in the Royal Military Police for eight years before transferring into the Royal Army Physical Training Corp to become a Rehabilitation Instructor. She initially got involved in CrossFit through work friends, participating in the Divided We Fall Games as part of a team before her first crack at the Open as an Individual.
Mum to Jake, Charlotte is another athlete who has to balance motherhood and training at such a high level:
“To be brutally honest sometimes it’s hard going, […] I’m just lucky that with a bit of prep Jake and I can be at the gym for 6:30 before school and I can get most of my training done during the working day.”
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With the 2021 Open on the horizon, Charlotte is right on the heels of Megan Lovegrove, eager to snatch the title of UK’s Fittest Woman.
David Shorunke
- Age: 30
- Weight: 100kg
- Height: 188cm
Qualifying for Regionals in his first year of competitive CrossFit in 2014, David Shorunke is nothing less than a force. With a background in basketball, rowing and weightlifting, the London-born athlete is the UK’s third Fittest Man. Currently living in Sweden, David earned his ticket to the 2020 CrossFit Games in the Strength in Depth Regionals held in London in January 2020 — coming in second behind Fittest Man on Earth Mat Fraser.
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This impressive display against the best in the world highlighted David as one-to-watch in British CrossFit; a dream that’s been seven years in the making;
“I think anyone who’s worked at a goal like this, for as long as I have, like six, seven years, understands there are no words that can describe how wonderful it is, that the work you’ve put in, that the people that have put in work around you and supported you, it’s finally paid off.”
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Unfortunately, David had to pull out of the 2020 Games due to a lower back injury sustained during a Dirty Diane workout, but plans to emulate his 2020 success in the coming months.
Head coach at Vici Athletics/CrossFit Kungsholmen in Stockholm, as well as a JST Compete athlete and coach, David is now working hard to take on Zack George and Elliot Simmonds in the Open in March.
