Sara Sigmundsdottir, one of Icelandic’s well known and respected athlete, has revealed she has been dealing with an auto immune disease and, therefore, won’t be able to compete during the CrossFit Semifinals this year, effectively ending her official season.
Sigmundsdottir has won the CrossFit Open 3 times and went to the Games every since from 2015 to 2020 where she podium twice in a row. However, since 2021, she hasn’t been able to get back to her prime and claim that “most epic comeback in CrossFit” that she wanted so much.
And 2024 is not going to be her year either because of an auto-immune disease called “reactive arthritis.”
Reactive arthritis is an autoimmune disease that occurs in response to an infection in another part of the body, often the intestines, genitals, or urinary tract. Common symptoms include joint pain and swelling, particularly in the knees, ankles, and feet, as well as redness and pain in the eyes, and urinary discomfort. This condition is triggered by a bacterial infection, and while the infection itself might be resolved, the immune system continues to attack the body’s tissues, mistaking them for harmful pathogens. Reactive arthritis can be chronic or resolved within a few months, and treatment focuses on managing symptoms through medications and physical therapy.
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Sara Sigmundsdottir and Her Auto-Immune Disease “Reactive Arthritis”
Sigmundsdottir has had her share of battles with injuries since 2021. Just before the Open that year, Sara revealed she had a ruptured ACL on her knee and was due to have surgery.
In 2022, she went to the Last-Chance Qualifier, but failed, and last year, the athlete ruptured her elbow tendon and could not finish event 6 with legless rope fully, ending her season again, shortly before Finals.
The ACL surgery in 2021 was a success, but her body has rejected the graft, something she discovered 8 months post-surgery. Turns out, her problems actually began in 2020, in May, while she was doing a box jump for a WOD. According to her, she “sustained a nasty cut on my shin, which resulted in an infection that I carried for a while without knowing it. This sent my immune system into overload and from there the condition emerged.”
According to Sara Sigmundsdottir, she discovered this auto immune disease 12 months ago, which is treatable, but she found it hard to get the right medicine and allowing her body to react to the treatment while training for her CrossFit season. “I am currently 3 months into the trial of the third type of medicine. It had been working until I got sick after the quarterfinals,” she wrote.
Because she needs time to heal, let her body accept the medicine and then get back to training, the short period of rest between Quarterfinals and Semifinals means she will not be able to compete this weekend.
Check out Sara Sigmundsdottir entire explanation below.
It’s time for me to be fully honest about what has been going on the past 3 years. I have talked about some of the things, such as the ACL tear in 2021, finding out 8 months post surgery that I no longer have an ACL after my body rejected the graft and then the ruptured elbow tendon that wrecked my Semi’s last year. Alongside all of this I have felt incredibly off with symptoms of chronic tiredness, dizziness, cramps, joints swelling up and many other things. For the longest time I chalked if off as my body’s response to overtraining.
After periods of resting and still feeling this way I sought opinions from several medical professionals. 12 months ago I finally received answers and was diagnosed with an auto immune disease called “Reactive Arthritis”.
The root cause of all this is a failed a box jump in May 2020 where I sustained a nasty cut on my shin which resulted in an infection that I carried for a while without knowing it. This sent my immune system into overload and from there the condition emerged.
The good news are that this is 100% treatable. The bad news are that finding the right medicine and allowing the body to react to the treatment is a process of trial and error and it can take a long time to get it right.I am currently 3 months into the trial of the third type of medicine. It had been working until I got sick after the quarterfinals. The short turn around between quarter’s and semi’s made it so that I didn’t allow my body to heal properly ahead of I testing the workouts, I did not do myself any favors by doing that, but that’s me, I always have to learn the hard way. I have been recommended to back off for the medicine to fully adapt to my body. Therefore I am sad to announce that this is the end of the Crossfit Games season for me this year. The sole focus is to get the medicine in full effect so that I can get my health permanently under control and be back in my element in training and on the competition floor.
I believe strongly that everybody has a specific purpose in this world. My purpose is to demonstrate that there is always a way through the obstacles. Like I have said since starting my career I can, shall and will.
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