Sea Level Athletics
11180 Voyageur Way, Unit 180 Richmond, BC, Canada

A letter from Andy, When I founded CrossFit Sea Level in 2019, my mission was to create a welcoming space where different people could come and enjoy a workout together. From my own experience, I knew that a strong community would inevitably form if I were able to achieve my mission, as almost all of my own closest friends were made at the gym. There was always a duality in my mind as to how I viewed CrossFit: on one hand there was CrossFit’s extremely effective training phil...osophy (constantly varied, functional movement, performed at a high intensity) and on the other hand there was CrossFit Incorporated, owned completely by Greg Glassman. In my view, CrossFit training and CrossFit Inc. are entwined, no matter how much I wish this were not true and it is for this reason that I have decided to disassociate CrossFit Sea Level from the CrossFit organization. When I started my CrossFit career, I was taught many times that ‘the needs of an Olympic weightlifter and your grandmother differ by degree, not kind. My interpretation of this was that CrossFit was meant for everybody. Greg Glassman recently made some deplorable comments downplaying the seriousness of racial injustice afflicting the United States. I condemn the stance Greg has taken towards these issues and CrossFit Inc’s subsequent actions following the backlash from the wider CrossFit community. I believe that CrossFit Inc. has tarnished their own reputation to such a degree that the ‘CrossFit’ moniker alienates people of color. Subsequently, I can no longer achieve my mission of creating a tight knit community at Sea Level if i continue to use the moniker. I will drop ‘CrossFit’ from our gym name and rebrand. However, constantly varied, functional movements, performed at a high intensity still remains a very effective training regimen. Sea Level will still remain focused on using this training philosophy pioneered by CrossFit to create fitter human beings. I apologize to anyone who has been bothered by my silence on this issue. I know that I have not addressed this openly or swiftly. It has taken a lot of contemplation for me to reach this point. Andy Chen #blacklivesmatter

Open gym tomorrow, 11 - 1ish. Send Andy a DM if you'd like to join!