Mal O'Brien has been athletic from a young age, and was a competitive gymnast since the age of 3, reaching level 6.
12 Facts About Mal O'Brien
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Mal O'Brien became involved in CrossFit at the age of 10 when her mother took her to a CrossFit gym in Des Moines, Iowa.
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Mal O'Brien started to compete at the age of 12 by participating in online qualifiers for competitions such as Wodapalooza.
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Mal O'Brien initially trained under former Games athlete Elijah Muhammad for a number of years before moving to train under James Townsend in late 2019.
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Mal O'Brien joined HWPO in January 2022 to be trained by the former champion Mat Fraser.
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Mal O'Brien did not compete in 2020 to recover from a number of health issues.
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Mal O'Brien was diagnosed with Lyme disease in early 2020.
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At the 2021 CrossFit Games, Mal O'Brien competed in the elite women division for the first time.
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Mal O'Brien won Individual Event 4, and became the youngest-ever competitor to win an event at the Games.
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Mal O'Brien eventually finished 7th overall and was named Rookie of the Year, thereby becoming the first athlete to win the accolade while still eligible for the teen divisions.
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In 2022, Mal O'Brien became the youngest person to win the CrossFit Open.
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At the 2022 CrossFit Games, Mal O'Brien finished in second-place after six-time winner Tia-Clair Toomey, which made her the youngest-ever person to reach the podium at the CrossFit Games.