Chandler Smith, who finished second at the Granite Games this past weekend, announced he would donate half his prize money to the CJ Morgan Foundation and UliftU on Instagram last night.
Chandler is part of CrossFit’s inaugural DEI council and withdrew from the CrossFit Games last year “to try and challenge [CrossFit] to take steps to improve itself.”
“The journey since then has been far from smooth, but I’ll never stop trying to make things better if a status quo is broken,” Chandler captioned his post.
“It is my hope that some of you join me in helping make positive change by helping these causes over the course of the Games season or fighting against injustice where you see it. Your actions matter.”
Fellow CrossFit Games athlete Noah Ohlsen commented he would second Smith’s actions: “Love that! I’ll join you with whatever prizes I may hope to win in a couple weeks!”
Chandler received $4,000 USD prize money for his performance at the Granite Games Semifinal.
Source: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.Read Chandler Smith’s full post:
One year ago @nohlsen and I put our @crossfitgames seasons on hold to try and challenge the organization to take steps to improve itself. The journey since then has been far from smooth, but I’ll never stop trying to make things better if a status quo is broken. In that vein, I am donating half of the prizes from this weekend to the @thecjmorganfoundation and @uliftu. The first program was developed in honor of CDT Christopher Morgan, an Army wrestler who lived every moment of his life in a way that improved the spaces he was in, and the second prepares individuals currently incarcerated and returning from prison to become fitness coaches, while also running fitness programs led by those coaches in under resourced parts of Philadelphia. It is my hope that some of you join me in helping make positive change by helping these causes over the course of the Games season or fighting against injustice where you see it. Your actions matter.
The CJ Morgan Foundation
Our mission for the Christopher “CJ” Morgan Memorial Foundation (CJ Memorial Foundation) is to support and enhance the higher education opportunities for students interested in serving their country within the armed services as well as those involved in student athletics, student leadership roles and community service activities. Guided by the wisdom of the African proverb “It takes a village”, the CJ Morgan Memorial Foundation, in partnership with the West Orange Scholarship Fund, seeks to ensure that no student is deprived of an education due to a shortage of funds or a lack of support buy expanding and enhancing those opportunities.
Excerpt from the CJ Morgan Foundation website.
UliftU
Our mission is to empower currently incarcerated and returning citizens to be professional Fitness Coaches. Through our certification program, our graduates are paid a living wage to run classes for underserved groups in an effort to fundamentally change outcomes related to chronic disease in Philadelphia.
Excerpt from the UliftU website.
Follow the CJ Morgan Foundation and UliftU on Instagram.
Image Sources
- chandler-smith-granite-games-podium: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.
- candler smith snatch: Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.