Case study: CrossFit 57 North

Drumnadrochit to Texas: Using PR to help get Rachel to the 2024 Adaptive CrossFit Games

Whale-like-fish provided pro-bono support to CrossFit 57 North and Rachel Hives following Rachel securing a place at the 2024 Adaptive CrossFit Games in San Antonio, Texas.

34-year-old Rachel, who was diagnosed with FND (Functional Neurological Disorder) at the age of 19, secured her place at the Games after competing against CrossFit’s adaptive athlete community in a series of qualifying events in early 2024. Going into the final 10 in the Female Standing Diagnosed category at the 2024 Adaptive CrossFit Games in Texas from 19th-22nd September, Rachel was seeded first place in the UK.

Getting to the Games

Getting to the Games was not only a big commitment for Rachel in terms of her training but also in terms of costs. She, therefore, started a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds for travel, accommodation and expenses for her and her coaching team.

But reaching the £8,000 goal would be difficult without an extra push. So, Whale-like-fish was on hand to support with a media relations campaign.

We first pitched Rachel’s story as an exclusive to BBC Scotland. The BBC team jumped at the opportunity to hit the gym (or box as it’s called in the CrossFit world) to interview Rachel and CrossFit 57 North owner and head coach Donnie Beaton, as well as capture footage of Rachel training. The resulting video was shared thousands of times across social media – click here to see it for yourself.

The video generated lots of interest and Rachel was mentioned on podcasts and YouTube videos, including this one from B.Friendly Fitness (skip to 1:33 to hear the presenters chatting about Rachel’s story), even being invited on some podcasts as a special guest.

Following the BBC piece, we issued the press release more widely, offering Rachel for interview. She was subsequently interviewed, photographed and filmed by local media outlets including MFR (Moray Firth Radio) and the Press & Journal, as well having her story featured in the Inverness Courier, Crip Life and The Highland Times.

Keeping Rachel in the spotlight

Once Rachel’s place at the Games was announced and first covered by media in July, we aimed to keep Rachel in the spotlight and encourage donations to her GoFundMe campaign.

Coverage of a fundraising competition held at CrossFit 57 North was achieved before a pre-event press release was issued in the week leading up to the Games.

We also assisted Rachel with the creation of sponsorship rate cards to help with her approach to businesses for support.

Taking to the competition floor

Come September, the GoFundMe campaign had reached £6,620 and it was finally time for Rachel to jet off to Texas and compete at the 2024 Adaptive CrossFit Games.

Four days and seven gruelling workouts later, and Rachel took seventh place against the top athletes from around the world. Whale-like-fish then rounded up the PR campaign with details of the final and photos of Rachel in action, resulting in the following coverage:

Well done to Rachel on her incredible achievement!

To find out more about how we could help you with public relations, whether it’s for an upcoming sporting event or a launch or campaign for any other type of business, please get in touch.