Five-Time CrossFit Games Champion Mat Fraser Sobriety Journey Begins at Age 17, Says Quitting Alcohol Made Him a Stronger Athlete!

Fraser is the first athlete to have won five CrossFit Games titles.

October 4, 2026

This article was last updated by Alisha Shrestha on September 22, 2026

Colchester CrossFit athlete Mat Fraser began drinking at a young age, reportedly before his teenage years, but stopped at 17 and has maintained his sobriety since, and says, “Sobriety makes him stronger”.

Mat Fraser was born on January 25, 1990, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, to parents Candace Jones and Don Fraser.

Raised by a Canadian sports figure parent and a pair skater, Mat was athletic from birth. He started waterskiing at the age of 18 months.

Following his sports background, he began weightlifting and became a champion at the age of 13. After a few years in the sport, he lost interest and started his journey in a CrossFit gym.

Later, he began participating in CrossFit competitions, eventually becoming a runner-up and even winning the Rookie of the Year award in 2014.

While achieving all this at a young age, he was also involved in drugs and alcohol, and his habits often led to fights and encounters with the police.

Colchester CrossFit Champion Mat Fraser’s Sobriety Journey Helped Him Become an Elite Athlete!

While the exact date when Mat Fraser started drinking and using drugs is not disclosed, it is known that he began before his teenage years.

Although drinking and drugs were not initially a major problem for him, his involvement in multiple fights and encounters with the police eventually made him realize the consequences of his actions.

However, one day before his senior year of high school, Mat decided to stop drinking, the last time he consumed alcohol.

Mat has openly shared his drinking habits from the beginning, but in one of his YouTube videos titled he explained how he made the decision and described his sobriety journey.

According to Mat, he was involved in a police situation, and his father had to complete some paperwork. His father remained calm, as if nothing had happened. Reflecting on the situation, Mat said:

The last night I drank was the night before my senior year of high school. I remember we got caught and received drinking citations. When we got dropped back off at home, I walked in and gave my dad the paperwork. There wasn’t much of a reaction from him. He wasn’t angry at me, he wasn’t upset, and that was pretty soul-crushing. It was a low point for me. I thought, the person I look up to, the person who’s supposed to love me most, is just like… there’s no emotion there. It was that night that I said to myself, I don’t want this for my life. I’m going to get my life together. I had big goals I wanted to go to the Olympics, I wanted to train at the Olympic Training Center. I realized I can’t keep up these habits and call myself an elite athlete. So I just said right then and there, alright, I won’t ever touch alcohol again.

After quitting, Fraser says he developed productive and healthy habits, especially through training. Early on, he did rigorous workouts, multiple sessions, and high discipline.

Mat also sought community help and was often involved in meetings and recovery sessions, trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Moreover, what helped him the most was his close friend Nate, who was going through a similar phase and introduced him to the meetings and sessions.

However, Nate himself was not able to succeed, as he relapsed and eventually took his own life. After this, Mat became even more committed to sobriety and learned the importance of staying sober.

Following Nate’s loss, he also reflected on his own choices and shared his thoughts in interviews.

“Something like that happens, it makes you realize like, nope, I’m not taking that chance. Your addiction, it’s not like you press pause and when you relapse you just hit play and start where you left off. Your addiction’s out in the parking lot doing pushups, it’s getting stronger.”

Therefore, after these points, Mat has never touched alcohol, and says sobriety makes him stronger, and encourages others to avoid drinking.

In Case You Don’t Know

• Mat Fraser is a five-time CrossFit Games Champion, winning consecutively from 2016 to 2026.
• Fraser retired from CrossFit competition in 2026 to pursue other opportunities, including coaching and business ventures.
• Mat co-founded HWPO, a fitness program and online coaching platform for athletes.

• Check other Articles on

Nishan Dahal writes sports with a human touch, covering breaking news, athlete lives, and the stories that stats can't tell. Nishan believes every athlete has a story worth telling. With the goal of bringing those stories to life with honesty, heart, and a touch of curiosity, he shares his insights through PlayerBio.

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