Duelling CrossFit and Hyrox fitness competitions draw thousands over weekend

This weekend, more than 6200 New Zealanders competed in two major fitness competitions.

Hyrox and CrossFit events took over both the North and South Islands this weekend, drawing athletes from around the country along with thousands of spectators.

More than 6000 athletes competed in Hyrox and Southern Crown saw just under 200 CrossFit competitors throw down.

The new mass sport of Hyrox reached the shores of New Zealand for the first time ever, with the event hosted at the Auckland showgrounds. It aims to be accessible to everyone by testing everyday human movement while being designed to be posted on social media.

Hyrox starts out with 1000m on a cross-country ski machine, followed by 50 m of sled push and pull, 80m of burpee broad jumps, 1000m on a rowing machine, 200m farmers carry (akin to carrying heavy grocery bags), 100m lunges with a sandbag on your back, and 75 to 100 wall balls (throwing a heavy medicine ball against a wall). There is also a one-kilometre run between each station.

Although CrossFit includes the same movements as Hyrox, it also tests gymnastics, weightlifting, swimming and biking.

Another major difference between the two is that Hyrox is the same set-race every time, whereas CrossFit programmes use different workouts and tests.

The CrossFit competition Southern Crown saw athletes nationwide and even from across the ditch compete in same-sex pairs. The competition - held at the Selwyn Sports Centre - tested athletes in workouts such as a weight lifting piece that ended with a max clean and jerk piece (weight is cleaned to the shoulders and then pushed above the head), or the old-school tire flips with some gymnastics.

Both sports test the functional fitness, endurance and strength of athletes competing.

So why are so many Kiwis amped to test their fitness?

The vibe

Men's Pro Hyrox athlete Dexter Buchanan said he competed for the challenge and the vibes.

"It's a huge vibe. There are DJs playing live music, everyone's working super hard and encouraging everyone else.

"It's so cool seeing everyone in Auckland getting amongst it."

Buchanan, 32, started Hyrox early last year and brought with him his cricket and rugby league background.

"I was just looking for something to push me and have a goal, like something to work towards.

"I'm pretty hooked on it now and I think it's the combination of the strength training, gym work and then the running as well," he said.

Buchanan grew up just north of Auckland and moved to Australia in 2016.

He said he loved that Hyrox events were always "pumping" but are also data-driven. He said athletes were well-tracked and able to improve on their time.

Buchanan came third in the Men's Pro Division in Auckland on Saturday and said it was an extremely close race between the top three.

"We all finished within 50 seconds of each other."

Health is wealth

Masters CrossFit athlete Karl Gui has been in the sport for three years and had two hip replacements in October 2023.

Gui, 46, said the road to recovery had not been too bad because he kept fit.

"I think [CrossFit] has helped. Before I had the surgery, I was already quite fit, so the recovery was shorter."

Southern Crown was Gui's first competition since his surgery.

"It's been very, very difficult ... but it's still going well.

"I'm quite a competitive person so competing is fun, also just hanging out with your friends and having fun."

Gui said he also loved competing because of the community and "it keeps you fit".

"Yeah, and you might get to live a bit longer," he said.

Gaining confidence

Young CrossFit athlete Alice Scott said she competed because the challenge gave her confidence.

"I feel like the tough events that you struggle with are more rewarding than the ones that you would win, because you know, you just proved to yourself that you can do certain things, even if it is hard," the 19-year-old said.

"I think the gym environment has given me more confidence, like mentally and physically in everyday life, to go up and talk to people."

Scott said she loved pushing herself while having fun.

"It's really easy to get along with everybody. It's a competitive but non-judgmental environment."

Scott competed at the international CrossFit games as a teenager, and the Torian Pro in recent years as an elite individual female, but she did not start with CrossFit.

"Originally I did ski racing and then I just had to stay fit for ski racing during the summer, and then yeah, I just fell in love with [CrossFit]."

Scott competed in ski racing at a junior international level.

Behind the scenes

Hyrox manager for Australia and New Zealand Mat Lock said he was excited about the first-ever Hyrox race in the country.

"From the racers to the judges, the spectators to our crew, everyone will feel the energy as we bring the world series of fitness racing to Aotearoa."

He said over 10,000 people total were a part of the weekend in Auckland.

Southern Crown event organisers Pete and Linda Fowler said they were excited to bring the wider CrossFit community together.

"We feel very connected to this community of people, not just the elite athletes ... but it's more about the wider community of athletes and their abilities," Linda Fowler said.

"We see so many people feeling empowered and accomplished because they're starting to do things they could never do before and never thought was possible. And we're bringing the wider community of CrossFit and functional fitness athletes together to showcase what people can do.

They pushed the divisions out to include more Masters athletes, Pete Fowler said.

"Really trying to reach out to that greater community, to encourage everybody to come along."

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