Dubai: Training partners Frederik Aegidius of Denmark and Annie Thorisdottir from Iceland claimed Dh200,000 each after winning their categories at the Dubai Fitness Championships, which concluded at the Dubai Mall ice rink late on Saturday.
Entering the third and final day of the men’s competition in fifth place with a tally of 293 points, former American football player Aegidius overhauled a group of four Americans to take victory with 898 points.
In second place was Kenneth Leverich on 854, Tanner Shuck was third with 832, Justin Ahrens fourth on 780 and Ryan Fischer fifth with a total of 766.
Meanwhile, Aegidius’ training partner and girlfriend Thorisdottir took the women’s section honours after she overtook long-time leader Lindsey Valenzuela of the US on the final day to finish the three days of competition with 935 points. Valenzuela was second with 913, while Marlene Andersson representing Kuwait came third on 861.
A student of biotechnology at the Danish Technological University, 25-year-old Aegidius discovered CrossFit in 2008 when his American football team, Copenhagen Towers, attended a ten-week pre-season training camp at CrossFit Butcher’s Lab.
In 2011, he took time off from football to train daily with coach Jami Tikkanen and Thorisdottir, a two-time CrossFit champion and the ‘Fittest Woman in the World’. Last year Aegidius won the 2012 European CrossFit Regionals.
Leverich and Valenzuela had been at the top of the leaderboards at the end of the qualifying rounds held at Fitness First locations up to September 8. The best 36 athletes in both categories competed in the final rounds over three days at Al Wasl Club and Dubai Mall.
Held under the patronage of Shaikh Majid Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, the annual championship is aimed at raising awareness levels of fitness among UAE residents, especially among Emiratis.
The best UAE competitor in the men’s section was Mahmoud Shalan as he ended in 11th place, followed by Khalifa Al Qubaisi in 14th, Rashid Al Mulla in 18th and Marwan Al Marri in 23rd.
Telephone operator du was main sponsor, while Dubai Sports Council was the official partner of the event.
