More Brazilians are speaking up against the way CrossFit has handled the situation after the tragic death of Lazar Dukic during event 1. Guilherme Malheiros and Victoria Campos both withdrew, while Julia Kato is still competing but feels the CrossFit Games should have been cancelled altogether.
Yesterday, BOXROX wrote about how Guilherme Malheiros wife, Luciana Dal Agnol, explained what happened behind closed doors with CrossFit organisers in the wake of Lazar Dukic’ death and that the feeling that athletes gave them during that meeting was not respected.
Now we have the accounts of another athlete saying something similar. Julia Kato explained in an interview for Hugo Cross. Victoria Campos wrote that Lazar Dukic was failed time and time again, once when he drowned and then on the tribute on Friday morning, while Gui Malheiros said he couldn’t stand the fact that the competition continue going on normally as if nothing happened when his best friend just passed away 24 hours earlier.
It is important to explain that, according to CrossFit, athletes were given a voice during the meeting. Dave Castro said that some athletes came to him to say they wanted to continue competing, but felt that opinion would not be well received, so CrossFit did a survey for athletes and among 170+ athletes surveyed, 78% said they wanted to continue competing, and that is why CrossFit decided to move on with the Games.
At the time of writing, 13 individual athletes have officially withdrawn their names from continuing in the competition this weekend at Fort Worth, Texas. All of them have left after the tragic death of athlete Lazar Dukic during event 1, a run & swim workout programmed on Thursday morning.
The full list of the athletes who are no longer competing at the 2024 CrossFit Games are:
- Luka Dukic
- Jeff Adler
- Laura Horvath
- Karin Freyova
- Emma Tall
- Elisa Fuliano
- Victoria Campos
- Sam Cournoyer
- Guilherme Malheiros
- Moritz Fiebig
- Jacqueline Dahlstrom
- Dani Speegle
- Arielle Loewen
See below exactly what each athlete said.
Brazilian Athletes Open Up About CrossFit’s Decision to Continue the Games
Julia Kato
Julia Kato hasn’t withdrawn from competition and won’t do so.
“I am not doing this for CrossFit. I’m doing this for the people that came here to watch, that I know spent a lot of money to be here.”
“For me, the right thing would have been to cancel the entire competition. But because of financial reasons, CrossFit and everything else, this is not possible.”
The athlete says she is competing still to make a statement to CrossFit, including the one minute she took without moving when the first event started after the loss of Lazar Dukic.
“This is not about the competition. I’m doing this for the community, so that we can change something next year. My one minute there was really to go against what CrossFit is doing.”
According to Kato, the conversation athletes had with CrossFit staff was mostly ignored by the organisation. “The vast majority of athletes got into a consensus that there was no atmosphere to compete, nobody wants to compete, […] there is no way to compete, or to think about money at a time like that.”
According to her, and in accordance with what Gui Malheiros’ wife said earlier, the athletes propose the idea of making the Games about the community, not about a competition between members. “Forget leaderboard, forget money. But CrossFit simply took our proposition and maintained with what they brought forward even before they discussed with the athletes, something that was already decided.”
Guilherme Malheiros
Guilherme Malheiros is perhaps the biggest Brazilian star on the competition floor among individuals. He is certainly the one who got closest to the podium at the Games – he finished 7th in 2021, same year Lazar Dukic had his rookie year at the Games.
Although Guilherme Malheiros posted a 23 minute long video on his stories in Portuguese, he also shared a shorter version now on his reels on his Instagram handle.
“I, me, Gui, I don’t feel right doing it. I don’t feel right being part of something that is happening as if nothing happened.”
He goes on to say that although there was a tragic event, one of his best friends Lazar Dukic dying, “things are just normal, and I don’t think that’s right for me to participate.”
According to Gui, he cried a lot Thursday and Friday and his mind was not in the right state to compete at all, even though his body was prepared for it. “It just doesn’t feel right to do something that doesn’t make sense any more.”
Guilherme withdrew after event 3 on Saturday afternoon.
“The way things are happening, and happened is not honourable, is not respectable in my point of view, in my opinion.”
He also acknowledged that there is no right or wrong in this situation either, that any decision would feel weird, to compete or not compete, and that athletes should be respected for the decisions they made. “Everyone reacts in different ways.”
Victoria Campos
Victoria Campos also withdrew from competition on Friday, but before event 3. This was hir third attempt at the CrossFit Games, but she decided to step down because of the way CrossFit handled the situation.
Like the other Brazilians mentioned on this article, she felt the tribute to Lazar was not up to standards.
“The “memorial” done for him Friday morning wasn’t enough for me. He was failed time and time again,” she wrote.
Here is everything she wrote on her Instagram account about the subject:
Lazar Đukić,
“My heart is shattered. The competition was already over for me the moment I found out about your tragic passing. I entered the arena to show my respect for you and your family in MY own way. At this moment I only want to vibrate positive energies so that your passing to the heavenly world knowing that you were loved and respected here on earth.”
Lazar is gone way too soon.
I’m so deeply sorry for the loss of such incredible human with the biggest of the hearts.
I was never ok to continue with the competition unless it was to honor him and all about him but the competition went on as normal and I couldn’t. The “memorial” done for him Friday morning wasn’t enough for me. He was failed time and time again.
My heart is heavy for this tragic loss that maybe could’ve been avoided if he was in a safer competition setting. The thought that I swam past the same spot where he had just drowned and that maybe he was just there a few feet below me but I didn’t see him is a trauma that I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life.
The Fittest on Earth will be crowned today and not to take away all the effort athletes are putting out there this weekend but TO ME none of this matters no more.
I’m praying for Lazar’s soul I’m praying that God finds a way to comfort his family and Anja’s heart.
Rest in peace Lazar Đukić 🤍
You can support Lazar’s family with the GoFundMe campaign that has been established.
