ABOUT US
General Manager
Colin, EVF’s General Manager, has been with EVF since 2014. And when you meet him, you can tell that he has a genuine lust for life. “I feel that it’s prudent and necessary to be passionate about anything you involve yourself in. For me, that would be helping people, lifting weights, writing music, reading, and eating!” Colin went to school to become a physical therapist but quickly realized he needed a change of pace.
“I prefer working with people before they get injured. That way you can teach them proper habits to avoid needing a physical therapist in the first place.”
For this reason, Colin works with a lot of our younger students (kids ages 8-17), as well as some of our more competitive athletes.
Favorite Quote: “Don’t let that weight be heavy.”
This applies not only in the gym, but also with any mental or emotional weight we choose to carry with us on a daily basis. If it’s not heavy, you can lift it.
Certifications:
Head Coach
Meet Coach Matt Chassot! Matt Has been doing CrossFit since 2015 and before that he played Basketball for 14 years, then Rugby and even ran a couple marathons! He’s passionate about progress both in finding new ways to improve himself or to get his athletes to move more efficiently. “That is why I love CrossFit and fitness so much: There is always something to improve on!”
He’s excited to join us and remarks that EVF is a community that welcomes everyone, of all backgrounds, experience and abilities.
Despite what some might think: He’s not from Germany and no, he is not Prince Harry!
Favorite Quote: “People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – That’s why we recommend it daily.”
Certifications:
Saying that it would be hard to find somebody with as many accomplishments as Coach Cynthia is an understatement. In addition to having more than 10 years of CrossFit under her belt, Cynthia played Rugby in the Women’s Premiere League Rugby during 2012-2018 and was part of 2017-2018 player pool selection of the USA National Rugby Team!
Her passion for strength and conditioning got her to try competing in the sport of Strongman. She won the Wodapalooza Strong Competition in 2020, and competed in several other Strongman events, including both the Pro Women’s Worlds and Strongman United States Nationals (2017: HWW181, 2019: MWW165).
She also ran the 2023 Martha’s Vineyard Marathon. Here are a few other things Coach Cynthia wanted to share:
I’ve been sober since 2014. I met my wife in CrossFit! We have a daughter who was born on New Years Eve in 2021, and a Miniature Australian Shepherd named Loki. I love reading and will take/give any and all book recommendations. I can tell you my favorite ice cream shop in most major U.S. cities.
What do you enjoy about working at EVF? – I know I’m at home when I’ve found a community that’s as crazy about working out as I am.
What’s your favorite quote? – ‘Progress, not perfection.’
What are you passionate about? – My family and my friends.
Certifications:
While attending high school, Matt successfully juggled ice hockey, skiing and tennis. “I continued to follow the yellow brick road, which led me to my life’s work. Following a 17-plus-year career on Wall Street, I got the opportunity of a lifetime: One that led me to use my skills to help others improve their lives.”
As a coach, Matt wants his athletes to give their best THAT day, moving well and pushing beyond mental and physical limitations.
Certifications:
Divya moved to New York from Sri Lanka, where she grew up. She qualified for the Nationals in Olympic Weightlifting in Sri Lanka.
She was twice the Western Province Olympic Weightlifting Champion in Sri Lanka. She naturally fell into CrossFit in 2018 as a way to complement her high skills in weightlifting.
What do you enjoy about working at EVF? – The community! Everyone is easy going and able to get support and attention from the coaches when needed.
What’s your favorite quote? – ‘If you want something bad enough, you will make it happen, whether it takes a year or a decade – and you really only live once!’
What are you passionate about? – I am passionate about Olympic Weightlifting. My dream is to represent my home country – Sri Lanka. I just moved to New York, chasing my goals and CrossFit has always been with me and given me purpose.
Certifications:
Meet Wayne, another CrossFit OG, and another amazing coach in the team! Wayne started CrossFit in 2014, but his passion for fitness and health goes way back. Prior to CrossFit, Wayne was a long-distance runner and ran Cross Country and Track. He earned a Masters of Education in Higher Education, and is pursuing finishing second graduate degree in Mental Health Counseling. If you are looking for any help or support along your fitness journey, you have found another fantastic coach! Here are a few other things Coach Wayne wanted to share:
What do you enjoy about working at EVF? – Having an opportunity to work with an array of athletes and athletic abilities.
What’s your favorite quote? – ‘For me, forgiveness and compassion are always linked: how do we hold people accountable for wrongdoing and yet at the same time remain in touch with their humanity enough to believe in their capacity to be transformed?’― Bell Hooks
What are you passionate about? – Holistic wellness (i.e., mind, body, spirit), coffee as a necessity and a hobby, helping others through emotional, cognitive, and physical fears, trials, and tribulations, and aiding in the development of integrating fitness as a key component of life-long wellness
Certifications:
Certifications:
Hector has been coaching at EVF since 2021, and if you have been around the gym for a short while and worked out with him, you know that you don’t want to mess around with him when it comes to lifting weight! He grew up playing Baseball and practicing boxing, yet, despite all of this, is one of the sweetest person at the gym.
Hector lives nearby, so if you see him in the street walking his dogs, be sure to say hi!
What do you enjoy about working at EVF? – The people! EVF gave me a community when I moved to the Upper East Side. Now it has become like a second home where I know I’ll always see a friend when I come workout.
What’s your favorite quote? – ‘Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can do what others can’t’ – Jerry Rice
What are you passionate about? – Weightlifting, both for strength and for longevity. I love to see people get strong and move weights they never thought they would.
Certifications:
The not-so-long-ago young Katie was a division 1 soccer player and threw the javelin. She played for the College of William and Mary and ended up winning 3 times the conference championship in the javelin as well as the freshman record holder.
Katie did her fifth year at Rutgers and took home 2nd at the BIG Ten conference championship. She was also awarded the MVP title for the 2017 season. Since then, she has been working out and competing in local CrossFit competitions. She began coaching CrossFit in 2019.
What do you enjoy about working at EVF? – I love the community! The athletes and coaches who show up day in and day out are really motivating and keep everyone accountable. The best part of the workouts are obviously when they are over lol, but the smiles and high fives shared with my peers make the workouts ten times better.
What’s your favorite quote? – ‘Nothing to it but to do it’ – Ronnie Coleman
What are you passionate about? – I am passionate about promoting fitness as a means for preventing chronic diseases prevalent in today’s society like cardiovascular disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes. I love the ideologies of CrossFit because they perfectly exemplify how fitness should be: functional fitness to promote longevity throughout life. The best way to treat these chronic diseases is prevention through education and physical fitness.
Certifications: