HYROX is an international organization that holds competitive hybrid fitness races all over the world. Their competitions feature eight individual workouts with one kilometer runs in between. Events are held in different locations throughout the world, culminating with the top athletes of those events gathering for a world championship contest. The 2022 HYROX North American Championships were held on Saturday, Jan. 22, 2022, in Chicago, IL.
Hunter McIntyre and Lauren Weeks competed to defend their titles as the reigning North American champions. Weeks repeated as North American champion, but Ryan Kent pulled off the upset to defeat McIntyre and win his first North American title. Weeks and Kent are now qualified for the HYROX World Championship.
2022 HYROX North American Championship
The top ten for both divisions are as follows:
Male Division Results
- Ryan Kent — 57:45 ($5,000)
- Hunter McIntyre — 58:49 ($3,000)
- Rich Ryan — 1:00:35 ($1,500)
- Dylan Scott — 1:01:51 ($1,000)
- Cole Schwartz — 1:02:52 ($500)
- Brent Hastert — 1:04:18
- Victor Quezada — 1:06:55
- Andrew Peternal — 1:08:03
- Alexander Fallek — 1:11:20
- Tom Paradiso — 1:12:00
Female Division results
- Lauren Weeks — 1:07:03 ($5,000)
- Rachel Vonderach — 1:07:30 ($3,000)
- Alyssa Hawley — 1:08:41 ($1,500)
- Kris Rugloski — 1:09:28 ($1,000)
- Camilla Massa — 1:10:27 ($500)
- Corinna Coffin — 1:13:06
- Terra Jackson — 1:14:36
- Erika Elko — 1:15:33
- Vivian Tafuto — 1:17:04
- Kelly Sullivan — 1:17:14
The event was streamed by Obstacle Racing Media, and the replay can be seen in the video below:
HYROX 2022 North American Championships Workouts
The individual workouts that take place in between each run remain the same in all HYROX competitions. This is the rundown of what the athletes had to do in Chicago at this year’s contest.
- Workout 1: 1,000 meters on the SkiErg.
- Workout 2: 50-meter Sled Push | Women: 275 pounds, Men: 385 pounds
- Workout 3: 50-meter Sled Pull | Women: 165 pounds, Men: 275 pounds
- Workout 4: Burpee Broad Jumps — 80 meters
- Workout 5: 1,000-meter Row
- Workout 6: 200-meter Farmer’s Carry | Women: 53 pounds, Men: 70 pounds
- Workout 7: 100-meter Sandbag Lunges | Women: 45 pounds, Men: 66 pounds
- Workout 8: 100 Wall Balls | Women: 14 pounds, Men: 20 pounds
Lauren Weeks
Weeks is the 2021 world champion, and she was the favorite to defend her North American Championship. Her run times ranged from 3 minutes, 52 seconds to 5 minutes, 3 seconds. She wasn’t the fastest athlete in any individual event, but she placed third in workouts 2 and 4. She did no worse than seventh in any of the eight workouts. That, combined with her total run time of 33:35, is what helped her clinch the victory.
2nd Place — Rachel Vonderach
Vonderach made this contest very interesting. Aside from keeping up with Weeks on the first run, she placed first on Workout 1 with a time of 4 minutes, 16 seconds. Workout 6 is where she struggled the most. It took her almost two minutes to carry the 53 pound kettlebells down the 200 meter course. Nonetheless, finishing less than 30 seconds after the defending world champion could be a confidence booster for Vonderach, who will now look to dethrone her the next time they face off.
3rd Place — Alyssa Hawley
Coming in one minute after Vonderach was Alyssa Hawley. She took third place in workouts 3, 6, 7, and 8. What kept her from finishing sooner was the running segments. Her best run was the first, which she timed in at 4 minutes, 5 seconds. According to a recent post on Instagram, she signed up to compete in this event with only a few days notice. To finish in the top three without committing earlier is a testament to her ability to excel in these events.
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[Reddit: Emma McQuaid Wins, Pat Vellner Three-Peats — 2022 Wodapalooza Results]
Ryan Kent
Many people thought if McIntyre were to meet defeat at this event, the competitor pulling off the upset would have to have an incredible day. Kent had such a day, finishing with the fastest time in five of the eight individual workouts, including the first three. His worst finish in any workout was 10th in Workout 8. His times on the runs contributed in his favor as well.
Out of his eight runs, the last one was the only one that was over four minutes (4:20). One major highlight of his day came at Workout 8. Kent performed the first 55 wall balls unbroken. After a slight delay to catch his breath, he finished all 100 wall balls before McIntyre got to 75. He now carries a lot of momentum going into the world championships in May 2022 due to his victory.
2nd Place — Hunter McIntyre
“The Sheriff” was the 2021 North American Championships winner as well as a former HYROX world champion and multiple-time Obstacle Course Racing world champion, but he was coming off a defeat at the 2021 World Championships to winner Tobias Lautwein. McIntyre pushed Kent the entire way, but ultimately Kent won by a little over one minute, thanks to his consistent efforts on the eight runs. While this makes two consecutive runner-up finishes for McIntyre, it would be foolish to write him off. Whenever he competes again, he’ll aim to re-establish himself as the premier force of this sport.
3rd Place — Rich Ryan
Ryan and fourth place finisher Dylan Scott kept pace throughout most of the day. They were very close to each other in multiple events. Ryan’s day started slowly by finishing in 10th place on the first two workouts, but seven of his eight runs were under four minutes, which kept him in the top three. That was also enough to hold Scott off to take the bronze position on the podium. Kent and McIntyre both follow the sport and its athletes well, so Ryan won’t be a sleeper going forward. He is clearly established as a threat in any contest he enters.
Future Hyrox Events
The next US HYROX competition is HYROX New York, currently scheduled to take place on March 5, 2022. The 2022 HYROX World Championships will also be on American soil, taking place on May 14, 2022 in Las Vegas, NV.
Featured Image: @dr0p_the_hammer on Instagram
