With multiple trips to the Games, Jacob Heppner is a name we all recognize. This year, though, his face will be missing from Regionals. Heppner announced on Instagram he won’t be qualifying, after 18.4 and the new movement standards for handstand push-ups left him in a troublesome position.

Really not sure how to start this off. So I guess I’ll start by hooking you with the statement “I will not be qualifying to regionals.” Now read below for the explanation. . . My 18.4 score was 104 reps. Most of you know that I love HSPU, HS Walking, and pretty much anything inverted. If these movements existed in a Regionals or Games workout then I usually came out top 5. Unfortunately a problem arose from the new standard, height + 1/2 forearm length. Now for all you folks claiming “If an athlete doesn’t like the new standard then they need to fix their body positioning and get better upside down” this is where you realize that isn’t always true. . . Let’s admit we’ve all at least seen that one person who really struggled to hit the standard and it wasn’t because they had bad positioning, but instead was due to their anatomy. The issue lies in the forearm length measurement. Instead of taking the whole arm length, which I admit would be difficult, only the forearm was measured. This creates the possibility that certain athletes, like myself, could be a statistical outlier in our ration of forearm length comparative to bicep/total arm length. Meaning having really long forearms when compared to overall arm length. . . I’ve watched my video many times and believe me I couldn’t get any closer to the wall or get my hands any narrower. I just happened to be one of the few athletes that had to stretch and press as much a possible to bet barely over that dreaded line. . . I would be lying if I told you the thought didn’t cross my mind of shorting a few measurements, bending my knees when measuring my height, or cutting a few 1/8’s off my elbow measurement. But when it’s all said and done I just wouldn’t be able to live knowing I cheated someone else out, regardless if I agree with the new standard or not. . . Crossfit isn’t life and I’d rather be known as a man of integrity than a great athlete. . . God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied – Matthew 5:6 . #crossfit #crossfitgames #intheopen

A post shared by Jacob Heppner (@jheppner66) on Mar 20, 2018 at 6:43pm PDT

The new movement standards this year certainly were a hot topic of conversation. Dave Castro made burpees a little harder by requiring scaled athletes to jump their feet out and in at the same time. Dumbbell snatches changed a bit, and of course, the standards for handstand push-ups became even more precise.

Some will cry, “Excuses!” on Heppner’s explanation, and sure enough, there are some comments on his Instagram post expressing doubt or suspicion over his words. Overwhelmingly, though, people are applauding his post and even echoing similar experiences. Only time will tell if the HSPU standard is something HQ and Castro will further address.

How did you feel about the standards after completing 18.4?

Main image: Jacob Heppner/Instagram