2023 DEKA FIT Orlando

Date: September 16, 2023

Location: Orange County Convention Center
Orlando, FL, USA

Live Tracking

Follow along with the live tracking as the race is unfolding.

DEKA FIT Orlando

This is the final stop in the 2023 DEKA FIT season, before the 2023 DEKA World Championships Dec 1-3 in Dallas, TX, USA. The top 20 athletes in each age group, as well as elites, will be invited to World Champs. If they haven’t put up a top 20 time yet this year, Orlando is their final opportunity.

We know a few big names that WON’T be there, like Ryan Kent & Rich Ryan. Rumor has it they’re both going to a DEKA STRONG at Arsenal Health & Fitness in Arvada, CO. Kent has already secured a spot with the second best time, 29:20, as one of only 3 athletes to go sub-30 this year. Rich Ryan is currently sitting in 11th place with a 31:13. While not his best performance, this should be good enough to earn him a spot in Dallas in December. Rich is also preparing to take on HYROX Madrid on September 23rd, so DEKA training is not his priority right now. He needs to put up a good time in Madrid to qualify for the HYROX Elite 15 and HYROX’s other major events this year.

We do expect a huge battle between bubble athletes, those who haven’t raced a DEKA FIT yet this year, and a few big names that we’re used to seeing.

Women’s Preview

Just like DEKA FIT Northeast a few weeks ago, this is yet another stacked field of women athletes. Here are the women contenders, along with their current place on the DEKA FIT leaderboard in 2023, and their best time so far this year.

• Meg Jacoby, 1st, 32:27 (world record holder)
• Vivian Tafuto, 2nd, 33:20
• Terra Jackson, 4th, 34:04
• Alex Walker, 16th, 35:48
• Jess Caviglia, 33rd, 37:25
• Shannon Payne, 37th, 37:56
• Camilla Massa (first DEKA FIT, but 21st in DEKA MILE)
• Samantha Faddis, 50th, 38:40
• Sarah Grippi-Snyder, 54th, 38:53
• Amber Nelson, 145th, 42:13
• Lauren Griffith (first DEKA FIT, but 17th in DEKA STRONG)

Meg & Terra have been acquiring DEKA world records all year, in some cases trading them back & forth. Seeing the top 2 ranked DEKA FIT athletes this year go head-to-head 2 months before Championships… that’s pretty sweet. And with Vivian in the mix, you could argue they make up 3 of the 4 fittest hybrid athletes in the world right now—just absent Lauren Weeks.

It’ll be interesting to see what Camilla & Lauren can do in their first DEKA FIT this year. Both have impressive performances in shorter versions of DEKA, but will it translate to the FIT? How hungry are they to snag a spot in the top 20 and qualify for the DEKA World Championships?

Men’s Preview

We won’t see as many big names on the men’s side, but that might actually make for a closer race. There are a few bubble athletes, and tons of guys in the 20th-70th range, who all have a shot for the top 20.

• Veejay Jones, 4th, 30:07
• Nick Ryker, 5th, 30:29
• Isaac Sanderson, 9th, 31:06
• Chaz Hatton, 25th, 32:33
• Kyle Reid, 30th, 32:57
• Glenn Racz, 42nd, 33:33
• Johnny Mares, 50th, 33:55
• Mark Falcone, 52nd, 33:56
• Dustin Needham, 66th, 34:28
• Kevin Gregory, 68th, 34:31
• Aaron Nowlin, 71st, 34:39

Veejay & Ryker are probably the favorites to go 1-2, but keep your eye on Isaac Sanderson. He’s been training with Rylan Schadegg, who just set two DEKA world records last weekend. Isaac is also coming off a very impressive 4th place finish at DEKA FIT Northeast a few weeks ago. Kevin Gregory is also someone to watch. He’s currently in 68th in DEKA FIT this year, but has the 2nd fastest DEKA STRONG and 12th fastest MILE.

We also have Isaiah Vidal stepping into the DEKA arena for the first time. Isaiah has been racing OCR for many years, and spent a lot of his time training CrossFit lately. He’s competed at other hybrid events this year, most notably Battle Bunker, where he qualified for the Hybricon Games this Fall.

On the women’s side, I expect the top 3 women to run away with the podium. There could be a race between the top 3 to sort out the podium order, and then a secondary race to determine 4th through 10th, as well as who puts up the times needed to qualify for Worlds.

On the men’s side, I expect a much closer race between the top 4 or 5 guys. And 5th through 10th could also be separated by mere seconds. Based on past performances, many of these guys are at a very similar fitness level. I’m expecting a tight race from end to end, with several men separated by only a burpee or two in the last station.

Also, did we mention Veejay called his shot for sub-30?

 

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About DEKA FIT

DEKA is an indoor fitness competition featuring 10 functional fitness zones preceded by a 500-meter run, 5k in total. DEKA is fitness gamified and designed for all levels. No matter your background or experience, DEKA will help you set your baseline so you can train with a purpose.

There are 5 different heat types:

• Open Heat: open to all levels of fitness ages 10+
• Age Group Heat: eligible for Age Group recognition
• Elite Heat: eligible for cash prizes
• DEKA FIT GORUCK: ruck or backpack – Male 30lb & Female 20lb – a limited number of loaner rucks will be available on-site courtesy of GORUCK. Eligible for prizes from Titan 6 Actual.
• Team Division: teams of 2 (Female, Male, & Coed) divide and conquer the DEKA FIT arena

Prize Money

The top 3 elite men and women each receive:

• 1st place: $1,000
• 2nd place: $500
• 3rd place: $250

Spectators

DEKA FIT Orlando is part of the Sheru Classic World Sports Festival. Spectators must purchase an Expo Pass ($35) to attend. Use code: DEKA10 by Friday 11:59pm EST for a $10 discount. Purchase spectator pass →

2023 DEKA FIT Orlando Results

Official Results →