Whether you’re in individual CrossFit Games competitor, part of a team, or a 60-year-old man, there’s something unforgettable about competing in the tennis stadium at the StubHub.

60-year-old Terry Peters, who finished sixth overall in his division, had the chance to experience the magic of the tennis stadium for the first time in the final 60+ Masters Men’s event of the 2015 CrossFit Games—“Amanda.”

“It was really exciting to walk into the stadium and have the crowd cheering as my name was announced,” Peters said. “It was amazing to be standing in the spot where I’ve watched so many incredible individual athletes compete.”

For Sharon Thielmann, a fellow masters athlete from Peters’ affiliate—CrossFit North Vancouver—just watching her friend compete in the tennis stadium was a wild ride. She vividly remembers how the event unfolded on the floor.

“The last event didn’t start off all that well for Terry….It threw Terry off for a few seconds. He did one too many muscle-ups, then when he got to the snatches he got a no-rep on the first one,” Thielmann said.

But after a rocky start, Peters calmed down and started pulling ahead. He quickly found himself leading the charge, his friends from North Vancouver cheering at the top of their lungs.

“We were practically all crying and screaming at the same time,” Thielmann said. “People all around us realized we were cheering for him and so they started to join in. Our whole section was standing.”

She added: “No cameras were on him until he very end.”

Peters said: “I could hear my friends cheering…I stayed calm and focused on each movement…When I finished and ran to the podium, it was the greatest feeling.”

In fact, Peters said winning Amanda is the highlight of any CrossFit competition he’s ever competed. And it offered redemption for falling slightly short of his initial goal of finishing on the podium in the overall standings. 

“My goal this year had been to make the podium,” he admitted. He was more than capable of achieving this; Peters finished second in the Open competition and third in the Masters Qualifier. Despite his success in those two events earlier in the season, Peters knows performing at the Games is a completely different beast.

“I’m normally pretty calm when I compete, but it is so much harder to stay that way here,” he said of competing at the StubHub. The daunting challenge led to some mistakes, he admitted.

“On the Triplet, which was the first event, I stayed with my plan and made gains all the way through the workout, (but) then on the final sandbag…I struggled to get it up onto my shoulder to run with it. I ended up wasting easily 15 seconds with it before just holding it in my arms and heading to the finish line,” Peters said. 

He added: “Sometimes an event just doesn’t go as you’d hoped, or even one slip up can cost you several positions.”

Despite small mistakes, Peters is proud of how he did. And perhaps even more proud are his fans, like Thielmann.

“Terry is one of the most inspiring people I know,” she said.

Dave Kitchen, the owner of CFNV, offered an even bigger compliment to his pupil.

“One of the proudest moments of my life. Terry Peters performance in the final event of the 2015 CrossFit Games. Feeling proud,” Kitchen posted to Facebook shortly after Amanda.

This kind of support will make it easy for Peters to continue to train and return to Carson, and to the tennis stadium, even stronger.

“As long as I’m healthy, I’ll continue to compete,” he said.