Jacob Heppner, who placed third in the online qualifier, declined his invitation to compete at the championship in Dubai this December. The three-time CrossFit Games athlete cited work conflicts as the reason for declining. Heppner is a project manager for a web development company.

A fan favorite, Heppner took the 2017 season off to rehabilitate an injury. Then in 2018, he failed to qualify for the Central Regionals after he posted a 1788th place finish on 18.4.

As per Dubai CrossFit Championship’s rules, Heppner’s invitation will be extended to the next in line and his $3,000 third place prize purse will also be forfeited. Heppner would have collected at least $4000 in total prize money between the online qualifier and a last place finish in Dubai.

Samuel Cournoyer and Lukas Hogberg have also declined their invitations.