This Fiji-born New Zealander will be making her second appearance at the Games, having debuted last year in her first year competing as an individual athlete.
Regular Wonder Woman is Alethea. A former gymnast, she competed at two Commonwealth Games before retiring from the sport in 2004. After a move to Sydney, she found CrossFit and hasn't looked back since, but unlike many (probably the vast majority but I really don't know) of the other women (and men) at the Games, Alethea isn't a CrossFit professional. She has a day job. An office job. A 9 to 5 that she fits her training around. Oh, and she also represents New Zealand as a weightlifter, recently winning a medal at the Oceania Weightlifting Championships.
So... after qualifying for the Games she just slotted in an international weightlifting event before the Games themselves. And all the while working full-time. And there's a wedding to plan as well. Or not. It’s only until we get the CrossFit Games out of the way! she explains. I can only give so much of myself to each task and I need to prioritize, so unfortunately that one’s taken a backseat at the moment.
And this year, Alethea is going to be a slightly better-prepared athlete at the Games than she was first time around. I only just changed my diet in December 2015. I was happy and quite content living on chocolate and salt & vinegar crisps and Oreos every evening, she says. I thought if I could make it to the CrossFit Games eating like that then I’d be fine. I’m eating a lot cleaner now and I feel that much better. I’m more alert and I’m recovering much quicker, so I’m sticking with it!
Off-season you'll find her with a beer in one hand and a pool cue in the other, but she's 100% on it the rest of the time, taking Sunday strolls with "my friends Kettle & Bell" till her shoulders are ready to explode just to improve her performance on one event - Struggle with a certain movement? she asks. Don't shy away, do more of it!
You can't actually keep up with Alethea, so don't you even think about trying, but you can follow her adventures on Instagram. And there are also a few clips of her previous life as a gymnast at the Commonwealth Games on YouTube - vaulting, for example.
Haven't found any weightlifting footage... yet.
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