Three time CrossFit Games competitor Talayna Fortunato has announced she won’t be competing in 2015, due to an ongoing ankle injury.

The podium finisher at the 2012 CrossFit Games has revealed she’ll be taking the year off and will have more surgery on her left ankle, which has been causing her grief since she was a junior.

Fortunato broke the news to fans on her Facebook page a few hours ago and also posted an article on her website outlining her decision. In it, she talks about the pros and the cons of deciding to take the year off. In the end it was her desire to compete at the highest level in years to come that led her to take time off:

As she states on her website:

Pro: If I bite the bullet now, take a year to focus all of my energies on fixing movement patterns, follow a progressive strength program without worrying about being in top competition shape, and move pain free again, I can have future years competing at more than my current to date 100% and try to be at the top of the game instead of just playing it.

Fortunato’s withdrawal will come as good news for athletes in the new Atlantic Region, which now boasts a strong field this year with 2013 CrossFit Games champion Sam Briggs joining in the region after leaving Europe.

Do you think Talayana Fortunato made the right decision? Do you think she has what it takes to return to the CrossFit Games again? Let us know in the comment section below: