FEATURES PUSHING UP AND THROUGH During an after school gym session junior Isabelle Ianni does tricep pushups as part of her workout regimen. (Photo by Ava Rawson)
BUILDING MUSCLE Junior Isabelle Ianni’s life spent in the gym earned her a 51st ranking for the 2017 Crossfit Games in her division.
BY AVA RAWSON REPORTER
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ibrant, bouncing music mix with the sound of weights hitting the floor, engulfing her as she pushes herself six days a
week. Since eighth grade, junior Isabelle Ianni has been taking the road less traveled, leading her “I think it’s straight to the 20/20 gym in Prairie really cool to see CrossFit Village, Kansas. Her work strong women in and outside of the gym just being led her to a 2017 overall themselves and world ranking in her age division. Currently, embracing what Ianni placed 51st in the their bodies can world. She has also been do.” the top competitor in the of Kansas for three -Junior Isabelle state years, according to the Ianni official CrossFit Open leaderboards. “I work a lot on building strength, so a lot of lifting and accessory work and then ramping up for the CrossFit open, that once a year competition,” Ianni said. “My coach will start giving me a lot more conditioning and we will make sure that the CrossFit gymnastics movements that I have to do I am able to cycle. Everything picks up and you are in your most fit state at that point in the year so you can compete.” Ianni’s interest for CrossFit first peaked upon seeing everyone doing different high intensity workouts together
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at the gym. She looked into different CrossFit athletes’ stories and was drawn to a fitness regimen made up of the different styles of training based on aspects of weightlifting, running, gymnastics, rowing and more. One of the first athletes that she looked into was Lauren Fisher, a CrossFit athlete who also started at a young age and made it to the CrossFit games. Ianni was able to meet Fisher when she attended the CrossFit games in Madison, Wisconsin this past summer. “The female CrossFit games athletes are really inspiring to me because I think it’s really cool to see strong women just being themselves and embracing what their bodies can do,” Ianni said. Apart from being a one of the top 100 CrossFit Athletes in the world for the 1617 bracket, Ianni has had the opportunity to watch the athletes she has trained with compete in the CrossFit games. Ianni traveled to the games with her mom, Maria Ianni, who loved to see how happy Ianni was while at the games. “To actually see them in person and how strong and fit they are was just amazing, and it was super inspirational and motivating to her,” Maria said. “It was just fun to see how excited she was about all of it.” Just as a mom, it gave me so much joy just seeing how happy it made her, and how excited [she was] about it all.” She has had the opportunity to work with acclaimed athletes she’s seen compete through athlete camps. At training camps, athletes have the opportunity to train with different coaches, learn about nutrition and work on their technique. Ianni has trained with Sam Dancer, who is currently ranked 14th in the world and has met many CrossFit athletes at the CrossFit games. When in the stadium at the Crossfit games every spectator can feel the energy
