Elisa Fuliano

Last updated
Elisa Fuliano
Elisa Fuliano.jpg
Elisa Fuliano French Throwdown 2025
Personal information
Nickname
Fulix
NationalityItalian
Born (1996-07-09) July 9, 1996 (age 29)
Genoa, Italy
Height157 cm (5 ft 2 in)
Weight61 kg (134 lb)
Sport
Sport CrossFit
ClubCrossFit Altessano
Coached byMatteo Agnello

Elisa Fuliano (born 9 July 1996 in Genoa, Italy), also known as Fulix, is a professional Italian CrossFit athlete [1] .

Contents

Fuliano is the first Italian athlete to have qualified for and competed in the Individual Women category at the CrossFit Games, the discipline's world championship, achieving this feat for three consecutive years (2022, 2023, and 2024).

She is also the first Italian athlete ever to qualify for the Rogue Invitational through the highly selective qualification process known as "The Q" [2] .

Biography

Born and raised in Genoa, Fuliano developed a passion for competitive activity early in life.

Her first sports disciplines included artistic gymnastics and track and field. In track and field, she specialized as a sprinter, competing in the 100m, 200m, and indoor 60m and 80m events, as well as the pole vault, where she achieved a personal best of 3.00 meters [3] .

After earning her language high school diploma from Liceo Grazia Deledda, where she studied English, French and Spanish, she attended the Linguistic Academy of Fine Arts in Genoa. She subsequently moved to Turin, where she obtained a degree in Digital Communication Design from IAAD (Istituto d'Arte Applicata e Design). Her relocation to Turin for academic and professional reasons marked the end of her track and field career and the beginning of her CrossFit journey.

In September 2019 she was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis, an autoimmune disease affecting the joints [4] . Although this chronic condition requires specific nutritional and physical management [5] , Fuliano nonetheless rose to the elite level of global fitness [6] . She currently trains in Turin at CrossFit Altessano under the guidance of coach Matteo Agnello, following the training program he founded in 2021: Demantur Program. She quickly established herself as Italy's top athlete before gaining international recognition [7] .

Career

CrossFit Games

The CrossFit Games is the annual world championship of CrossFit. The qualification pathway for the Individual Women category is highly selective and structured in three progressive elimination phases: the Open, the Quarterfinals, and the Semifinals.

In 2021, Fuliano had her first serious attempt at qualifying for the CrossFit Games. She finished the global Open in 306th place and ranked 3rd in Italy, demonstrating her rapidly growing competitive strength. She advanced to the Quarterfinals, placing 125th in Europe, but did not progress to the Semifinals. This experience marked a pivotal learning year that set the stage for her subsequent four consecutive Games qualifications starting in 2022.

In 2022, Fuliano made her debut at the CrossFit Games in Madison [8] . She finished the Open and Quarterfinals as the 3rd Fittest woman in Italy [9] . She secured her Games spot by placing 5th at the European Semifinal, CrossFit Strength in Depth in London [10] . Competing as the sole Italian female athlete [11] , she finished 35th overall at the Games [12] , earning her first title as "Fittest in Italy" [13] .

In 2023, Fuliano qualified for her second consecutive CrossFit Games through the Semifinal held in Berlin, where she placed 9th [14] . She achieved her best finish yet at the Games in Madison [15] , concluding the competition in 20th place overall [16] , the highest placement ever for an Italian female athlete [17] [18] . She was again crowned "Fittest in Italy".

In 2024, Fulix qualified for the third consecutive time [19] for the CrossFit Games in Fort Worth through the Semifinal held at the LDLC Arena in Lyon during the "French Throwdown." Despite having her strongest qualification season (8th at the Semifinals), her participation in the Games ended early. She withdrew after three events (38th overall [20] ) as a mark of respect for the Serbian athlete Lazar Đukić [21] , who tragically passed away on August 8 2024, during the first open-water swimming workout in Marine Creek Lake [22] [23] . Fulix stated that her decision to withdraw was a mark of respect for the athlete Lazar Đukić. Her choice was shared by other competitors and widely reported in sports media as a stance on athelte safety adn community ethics [24] [25] . Despite the withdrawal, she claimed the title of "Fittest in Italy" for the third consecutive time.

In February 2025, Fuliano announced her decision not to register for the CrossFit Open [26] , effectively withdrawing from the 2025 Games season's qualification pathway [27] . She cited the emotional toll of the events at the previous year's Games and a lack of belief that sufficient safety measures had been implemented [28] . She stated her intention to focus instead on major off-season international competitions [29] [30] .

Nevertheless, during the season she competed in both qualifying events for the CrossFit Games: the Wodland Fest in Malaga and the French Throwdown in Montpellier, where a top-two finish secured access to the Games [31] . She placed second in Malaga and first in Montpellier, thereby earning her fourth qualification to the CrossFit Games twice. However, despite securing both qualifications, she was unable to participate as she was not eligible for that, having not taken part in either the Open or the Quarterfinals.

International Competitions

Outside of the CrossFit Games season, Fuliano has actively competed in several other major international events, which have provided her with crucial exposure to the global CrossFit field.

In 2021, she represented Italy at the Functional Fitness World Championships in Norrköping, Sweden where she finished 5th [32] .

In 2022, she secured a significant victory at the German Throwdown [33] [34] .

The following year, 2023, proved strong, with her achieving Top 10 finishes at major sanctionals: placing 7th at Wodapalooza in Miami [35] and an impressive 5th at the Dubai Fitness Championship [36] .

Her momentum continued into 2024, where she placed 9th at the Dubai Fitness Championship [37] [38] , finished 2nd at the Belgrade Games [39] [40] , and placed 8th at the French Throwdown, that year's Europe Semifinal event [41] .

The 2025 season saw her continue this high-level performance, taking 5th place at Wodapalooza [42] [43] [44] , 2nd at the Wodland Fest in Málaga [45] [46] , and ultimately winning the French Throwdown in Montpellier with a total of 664 points [47] [48] , including a notable performance in the "Heavy Isabel" event with a time of 3:47.60 [49] .

In 2025 she set a historic milestone for Italian CrossFit, becoming the first and only Italian athlete to qualify for the prestigious Rogue Invitational [50] . After dominating “The Q”qualification tournament with an overall 1st-place finish worldwide [51] , she competed in Aberdeen, Scotland, placing 16th overall [52] and establishing herself among the top twenty strongest female athletes in the world.

National Competitions

In Italy, Fuliano has been a consistent frontrunner since 2020, winning competitions such as the Wodagoa in 2020 and 2021 in the M/W team division [53] .

In 2021, she claimed the national title at the Italian Functional Fitness Championships in Senigallia and took 1st place at the Tuscany Games [54] .

In subsequent years, she continued to achieve significant placements, including a victory at the UBL Italian Championship in 2025 [55] , confirming her position as one of the most important figures on the national scene [56] .

Hyrox

Fuliano has also competed in Hyrox events, which combine running and functional workout stations, showcasing her hybrid fitness capabilities [57] .

In October 2024, she competed in the HYROX Milan event in the Women's Doubles category alongside Camilla Massa, winning the division with a time of 1:01:37, beating 584 other teams [58] .

In 2025, she competed in the Rimini HYROX event in Mixed Doubles with her coach, Matteo Agnello, finishing 18th [59] .

Achievements

CrossFit Games and Qualification Stages

YearEventItaly RankEurope RankWorldwide Rank
2021Open3rd [60] 86th [61] 306th [62]
2021Quarterfinals3rd125th [63] 415th [64]
2022Open3rd [65] 41st [66] 119th [67]
2022Quarterfinals3rd [68] 34th [69] 71st [70]
2022Semifinals5th [71]
2022 CrossFit Games 35th [12]
2023Open1st [72] 2nd [73] 12th [74]
2023Quarterfinals1st10th [75] 22nd [76]
2023Semifinals9th [77]
2023 CrossFit Games 20th [16]
2024Open1st [78] 13th [79] 36th [80]
2024Quarterfinals1st6th [81] 11th [82]
2024Semifinals8th [83]
2024 CrossFit Games 38th [20]

Major International and Sanctioned Competitions

YearEventPosition
2021Functional Fitness World Championships5th [84]
2022German Throwdown1st [85]
2023Wodapalooza7th [35]
2023Dubai Fitness Championship5th [36]
2024Belgrade Games2nd [39]
2024Dubai Fitness Championship9th [37]
2025Wodapalooza5th [42]
2025French Throwdown1st [47]
2025Wodland Fest2nd [46]
2025Rogue Invitational16 [52]

Other Competitions

YearEventPosition
2021Fittest Freakest2nd
2021Italian Functional Fitness Championship1st [86]
2021Wodagoa1st [53]
2021Tuscany Games1st [87]
2022Wodagoa1st [53]
2022WW4M8th [53]
2025Ubl Italian Championship1st [55]

Personal Records

CategoriaEsercizioMassimale
WeightliftingBack Squat160 kg
Front Squat135 kg
Clean & Jerk115 kg
Snatch91 kg
Power Clean108 kg
Power Snatch84 kg
Shoulder Press61 kg
Jerk120 kg
Bench Press90 kg
Deadlift165 kg
Push Press95 kg
GymnasticsToes to Bar70
Pull-ups71
Chest to Bar52
Bar Muscle-ups40
Ring Muscle-ups21
HandstandHSPU80
HSPU Strict Face Wall40

Personal bests in athletics

EventPerformanceDateLocation
50 m6.98 s08/01/2011Nice [88]
60 m8.15 s21/01/2012Florence [89]
100 m13.06 s03/02/2013Genoa [90]
200 m27.71 s26/01/2014Genoa [91]
400 m1:04.326/01/2014Genoa [92]
600 m1:58.0926/01/2014Genoa [93]
1000 m3:44.126/01/2014Monte Carlo [94]
Long jump4.70 m26/01/2014Genoa [95]
Triple jump10.00 m26/01/2014Imperia [96]
High jump1.35 m26/01/2014Genoa [97]
Pole vault3.00 m26/01/2014Genoa [98]

References

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