WISCONSIN, USA – A wildly bizarre, foggy sensation had unexpectedly taken over Kim Purdy’s body.
First, a throbbing pain hammered burning spikes deep into her legs, then her anatomical responses became slow and uncooperative.
The CrossFit champion from Canmore knew something was going terribly wrong as she tried to shake off the heavy-footed feeling during the biggest competition of the year.
“There’s videos of me and I look like I’m drunk,” said Purdy. “I can’t stand up and I’m jumping on the thing and I’m falling. To this day, I’m not sure why I didn’t stop. I wasn’t even thinking.”
Things were supposed to be tough at the 2023 NOBULL CrossFit Games from Aug. 1-6 in Madison, Wisconsin, USA, but a sizzling summer heat was causing extreme havoc on the roasting athletes – particularly Purdy.
The blazing temperature, which was in the low 30s Celsius with a humidity that made it feel hotter than it was, became a point of concern for athletes and organizers. A temperature gun showed the warmth radiating off the artificial outdoor turf at more than 60 C.
“There was a moment when she stood up from a burpee and took a couple of steps backwards, staggering,” said Purdy’s coach, Travis Mann, who was watching on the sidelines with her parents. “It went from encouragement to this isn't right and then you were fearful and just concerned.”
Purdy, the 2022 world champion in the 50- to 54-year-old women’s category, was the favourite to repeat after successful qualification rounds earlier this year. Training in high-intensity strength and conditioning programs, mainly at CrossFit Canmore, it’s safe to say that Purdy has proved to be “one of the fittest athletes on the planet” in recent years.
At the CrossFit Games earlier this month, the Canmore athlete showed up on day one switched on. She was way out in front during the second workout, the Farmers Field, which showcases heavy lifting, hurling medicine balls and box jumping.
When she arrived at the burpees section, where athletes jump over a mid-sized box that’s when Purdy felt an immediate change for the worse. Things went from great to “not feeling right” and then she “felt terrible.”
Unable to get herself over the box as the harsh sun beamed down, the workout leader watched as seven other athletes caught up to and then passed her.
Medical staff approached the struggling Canmore athlete and asked if she was doing OK, to which Purdy replied 'yes,' but “clearly I wasn’t.”
“At first, I was kind of like [to myself] ‘you need to get it together’ and then after it wasn’t going away, I was like ‘you just need to get through this,’” said Purdy, who was suffering from heatstroke.
“As soon as I finished, these two guys just came and picked me up and carried me off, and I thought, 'Oh thank God,' because I can’t even stand up. It was brutal.”
The hunched over athlete was carried to a freezing cold ice bath and tossed in. A bit out of it, Purdy thought on-site doctors were going to tell her she was out of the competition. If an athlete misses one workout, they are eliminated. However, an unsteady Purdy managed to tough it out and make it to the start line for the next workout, the helena, an hour later.
Unwilling to let the medical staff throw in the towel for her, the Canmore athlete said the decision to continue on didn’t do her body any favours.
For the remainder of the competition, staff closely monitored Purdy, who was in rough shape, but persisting forward.
After barely getting through day one, the following day showed the debilitating effects weren't gone from Purdy’s system.
During the evening’s five-kilometre run, which Purdy thought would be a piece of cake, she ended up stumbling across the finish line.
“It was embarrassing. I literally fell, like, my legs gave out just before the finish line,” Purdy said. “So I stood up, got over the finish line, and I was like, ‘you’re not’ – I just never really recovered from that, unfortunately.”
The staunch Canmore CrossFitter pushed herself to the end of the international competition. After winning it all a year ago, Purdy finished in sixth spot in 2023.
She was disappointed at not being able to compete to her full capabilities, but Purdy saw something in herself this year that she hadn’t fully experienced in the past. It had taken a brutal gut-check to see it, but the grit and determination to keep going was a validating notion.
Purdy’s ass-kicking had nothing to do with winning or losing, but everything with believing in herself.
“It was kind of an ‘ah-ha’ moment, where I realized this is who I am and just being able to persevere and adapt to adversity,” said Purdy. “It was never really an option to quit in my mind, which I think is huge as well. I feel like I’m more proud of this Games than of last year and winning.”
Mann said Purdy’s drive to do her best while dealing with heat exhaustion was “incredible to watch.”
“There are a whole lot of ways to win, and sometimes, it's not with a medal around your neck,” said Mann.
“The commitment just to prove to herself that she could continue was just awesome to watch and super inspiring to kind of be around.”
Those who know Purdy will say she’s too modest in her accomplishments, keeping a low profile whenever she can. A hard worker in the gym, Purdy’s all about the process and enjoying what she does.
Starting a decade ago in CrossFit, Purdy quickly developed a passion for the sport. After a few years, she was on top of the pyramid in national rankings.
Following the competition, Purdy took some much-needed time to recover. She acknowledged the team around her at the Games and the CrossFit community for helping her get through that rough week south of the border.
She imagined being more heartbroken at her final placing on the leaderboard, but she spoke to all the positives the sport brings in her life instead. As part of the learning process, Purdy said dealing with the heat is something she'll have to give more attention to in the future.
“As long as I’m able to, I will keep competing,” she said.
