Cigna Healthcare HYROX Open Asian Championships Preview: Top Athletes to Watch
The Cigna Healthcare HYROX Open Asian Championships will begin this weekend. It’s the second of a series of Majors in which elite athletes vie for a spot at the World Championships.
The race is being held in Hong Kong and will feature the Elite 15 division, in which individuals will compete for three qualifying spots in the male and female divisions.
- Other divisions will also compete, with more than 6,500 athletes expected to race over the two-day competition.
The details: The race is being held at the Asia World Expo Centre and features a uniform square running track. Runners will likely look to separate themselves early on to avoid any bottlenecks.
- The event will be live-streamed on the HYROX YouTube channel on November 22, beginning at 9:30 a.m. GMT (4:30 a.m. ET).
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Athletes to Watch
Due to the new roll-down rule, athletes aren’t just racing for first place; instead, it’ll be important to watch those who finish fifth place and above. The new rule, similar to the way the backfill process worked in CrossFit during the Sanctionals era, will offer qualifying spots below the top three if any of them have already qualified for the World Championships.
On the women’s side, Lauren Weeks is looking to get her second Majors win of the season. Joana Wietryzyk is having a breakout season and comes in ranked fourth. Kate Davey is ranked in sixth place and will be one to watch as she seeks a top qualifying spot.
- Mikaela Norman, a former CrossFitter and former HYROX world record holder, is also returning to the competition floor following serious health issues last season.
The men’s field is also stacked with returning Majors winner and current World Champion Alex Roncevic competing. He faces some stiff competition alongside James Kelly and Ryan Schadegg–both already qualifying for Worlds.
- Since those three men have already qualified, the battle will be for third, fourth, and fifth. Some athletes who have already left a mark and are ones to watch for those spots are Michael Sandbach and Fernandez Pelayo.
HYROX Open Asian Championships Elite 15 Athlete Rosters, Men | Women
- Alexander Roncevic, AUT | Lauren Weeks, USA
- Michael Sandbach, ENG | Viola Oberländer, GER
- James Kelly, AUS | Linda Meier, GER
- Pelayo Menendez Fernandez, ESP | Joanna Wietrzyk, AUS
- Rylan Schadegg, USA | Lauren Griffith, USA
- Beau Wills, NZ | Kate Davey, GBR
- Jannik Czapla, GER | Ida Mathilde Steensgaard, DK
- Tomas Tvrdik, CZE | Zara Piergianni, UK
- Tim Wenisch, GER | Lena Putters, BEL
- Joffrey Voisin, FRA | Mikaela Norman, SWE
- Jonathon Wynn, AUS | Seka Arning, GER
- Jake Dearden, UK | Jana Lebenstedt Lebenstedt, GER
- Graham Halliday, SCO | Jessica Pettrow, AUS
- Sebastian Ifverson, DK | Alina Bräuer, GER
- Sadiq Elfitouri, UK | Jess Towl, UK
One Last Thing
This will be the fourth year a HYROX event is held in Hong Kong, a city that has embraced the fitness community and the crowd it draws.
- The race standards continue to increase as HYROX athletes break records and push the limits of their fitness with times well under 1:00 hour, a milestone that athletes have far surpassed in recent races.
The Cigna Healthcare Asian Championships is one of four Majors of the 24/HYROX season. The next two Majors will be Las Vegas and Glasgow.
All About HYROX + CrossFit
- The Ultimate Guide to HYROX, “The World Series of Fitness”
- So, I Did HYROX: An Honest Review by a Diehard CrossFitter
- You Signed Up for HYROX — Now What? Here Are 5 Tips to Follow
Featured image: HYROX
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