Balanced Craw 2025 Open Recap

The Balanced Craw 2025 Open took place March 20-26, featuring fierce battles across all divisions, with some dramatic last-minute shifts and impressive performances.

Donor Men:
Garet Hil started strong, taking the lead on the first day of the competition with an 18-point initial workout. After two attempts, achieving 16 and 17 points, Eric Walano’s third attempt edged out Garet’s score, securing him first place with 19 points. Garet’s final attempt on the last day of the competition tied Eric at 19 points (they also tied with 21 pull-ups each) leaving the two competitors deadlocked in first place. Garet asked the judges to reach out to Eric to see if he could record another workout and possibly break the tie. Eric was eager to compete but couldn’t exercise that day because he had given blood,so the judges gave him a one-day extension to break the tie. On Thursday morning, Eric dug deep and improved his performance for the 4th time with a 19-point score including 27 pull-ups, breaking the tie and securing first place. In a thrilling last-day submission, Justin King surged from seventh place to third place with a 15-point clutch performance, making this one of the most dramatic come-from-behind finishes in recent Donor Games history.

Donor Women:
The women’s donor division saw a dizzying pace of leaderboard movement throughout the week. Courtney Cox led for much of the competition,  followed closely by Roni Hays and Mimi Mahon, who were tied in points but came up short on the pull-ups needed to move ahead of Courtney. On the last days of the competition, Mimi and Roni improved their performances and the leaderboard had Mimi in first place and Roni in second. Then things took a dramatic turn when McKenzie Hull, a double donor (liver and kidney), entered the competition with a 12/12 workout on the last day, followed soon after by Courtney, who improved her score, creating a tie for first place, pushing Mimi to second with 11/17 and Roni to third with 11/13.

Recipient Men:
There was intense competition in the recipient men’s division, as this category continues to grow and recipients prove they can outperform many athletes in these workouts. Andrés Falco briefly held the top spot after a strong first entry of 10/14, but 2025 newcomer Codiee Lofquist continues to dominate in his rookie season with a stellar last-day submission, securing the win with a 13/18 score.

Recipient Women:
Danielle Fiorito, who is awaiting her first transplant with Stage 5 kidney failure, claimed first place in the recipient women’s division with a gritty performance and a 14/12 score. Sydney McGuire, a liver recipient whose brother Thomas Sullivan is her donor (and also a top Donor Games athlete), came in second with 14/7. Abigail Beckman-Green, who had a memorable breakout performance in the 2024 1-Mile Swim, finished third with a strong 6/6 score.

General Divisions:
In the general men’s division, several athletes held the top spot before Tony Lauters, who ranks among the top 100 in CrossFit in the U.S., clinched first place with a last-day effort of 20/22. On the women’s side, Sam Briggs, the 2013 fittest woman in the world, led for much of the competition with a dominating 17/17 score, but Megan Bell’s workout on the last day came out on top, besting Briggs by one rep and landing Megan in first place.

This competition was one of the most dynamic yet, with incredible performances and dramatic shifts in rankings. Congratulations to all the athletes for their dedication and hard work!

Final Leaderboard