Marion CrossFitter Placed Ninth in the World

The annual NOBULL CrossFit Games have officially come to a close and Marion's Megan O' Donnell Parks crushed it.

Parks left for Madison, Wisconsin on Saturday morning, July 24, with high hopes and a positive outlook. She was ready to compete in the Women's 50-54 division with confidence, as long as it meant having a good time. Parks described the check-in process as like no other she's ever experienced.

"We got there and checked in with the sponsor NOBULL and every single athlete had their own complimentary and personalized clothes that had our last names on it," Parks said. "We even got a personalized outfit specifically for the opening ceremony, which was really cool."

Parks was gifted about three or four outfits from the very giving CrossFit sponsor including footwear and a professional photoshoot.

"They brought us a bag full of brand new shoes and clothes to take photos, it was just phenomenal," Parks said. "I couldn't get over how incredibly nice, professional and super helpful the staff was. It just made the whole registration part that much easier."

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Originally, Parks was scheduled to perform with a 300 meter swim in a lake, but the water levels were too low.

"It ended up being a combination run, swim, run, with an obstacle course," Parks said. "Overall, I took third place in that specific event. I was pretty happy about that."

As for the most difficult categories, Parks struggled a bit when it came down to jump roping and tricep muscle-ups.

"It was the last workout before the finals and we had to do 'double-unders' (when the jump rope makes two passes beneath your feet instead of one) and bar muscles-up," Parks said. "The problem was, we were jump-roping on the turf and when you're used to a smooth floor beneath you for the rope to slide on, it was difficult since it kept catching and getting caught up on the fake grass."

At the end of the day, Parks pushed forward and persevered herself into the Finals where she made the Top 10 for her age group and ninth overall worldwide. Her only rule she had for herself was to not finish in last place and she exceeded that expectation by a long shot.

"It was an absolute joy to workout beside such friendly and supportive women, it was a great experience and I'm so happy with the outcome," Parks concluded. "I was surrounded by so much love and support from family and friends."