The Open Report: Week 9 — The Highlights

Editor’s Note: “The Open Report” is a multi-part series by Mike Halpin that breaks down the current CrossFit Open registration numbers and examines their historical context. You can read the previous installments here and here.

The 2024 CrossFit Open is officially closed!

How was it? Did you hit your goal or come up short? Did you make the 25-percent cut for Quarterfinals? If yes, are you planning to register for Individual or Age Group Quarterfinals starting on April 17? 

All the best in the next stage, whether you’re continuing your CrossFit Games season, signing up for a local competition with friends from your gym, or challenging yourself in your affiliate to right some of the wrong situations you found yourself in during 24.1, 24.2, or 24.3.

With the end of the Open, so comes the end of this series. It’s been a blast tracking the Open numbers and sharing them with all of you. There is a lot more to still dive into in the aftermath as we assess things like “How many people really did the whole Open?” (Here are those numbers, depending on how you want to slice it)

Seventy-seven percent of all registered athletes completed all of the workouts in the Open. Just over three out of four across all divisions. Ninety-three percent of all registrants completed at least one of the three weeks of the Open.

Over the last eight weeks, I have touched on a variety of topics. Today, I want to look back on a few highlights and see where some of the numbers and stats ended up as we officially close out the Open. 

Let’s dive in.

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[Related: CrossFit Open 24.3 Livestream Concurrent Viewership Slides; 24-Hour Total Views Reach New High]

Week 1, “The Barometer of CrossFit”

If Open registration numbers are strong, the community views CrossFit HQ’s “fitness” as improving; if the registration numbers dip, the community sees HQ’s “fitness” as being in decline.  

The CrossFit Open grew 6 percent year over year, from 2023 to 2024, with a final total of 343,528 registered athletes. I had thought 10-percent growth or bust, but given the year that CrossFit has had — with changes in the C-level, affiliate fee increases, and more — a 5-plus-percent increase is a positive direction for HQ.

[Related: 10 Thruster Workouts for Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced Athletes]

Week 3, “The Service Open”

Six weeks ago, CrossFit announced the return of the Service Open and a new online second stage for service member athletes. 

Here is what the final registration total for the Service Open looked like:

And here are the winners in each Service Member category:

[Related: Every Winner of the CrossFit Games]

Week 4, “The Unaffiliated”

Essentially, all “unaffiliated” means is the place where the athlete is doing the workouts doesn’t fly the CrossFit flag and pay the affiliate fee, and the athletes under their roof can’t use their name on the leaderboard or at the Games. This number has risen in the last few years, especially in the years after the pandemic. Here is where we ended up in 2024:

[Related: The Best CrossFit Workouts for Beginners to Build Strength]

Unaffiliated athletes grew slightly in 2024 to a total of 10.59 percent of the field. That’s up from 10.45 percent in 2023. The growth was in every division this year which hasn’t been true in years in the past. 

With the departure of some affiliates in the last year — before or after the affiliate fee increase, as well as an Open that Dave Castro said someone could easily do in their garage — it makes sense that this number can grow, but is it in the best interest of CrossFit for it to do so?

Week 5, “Qualifying for Quarterfinals”

We already touched on the top 25 percent cutline for the divisions, so I won’t rehash it again. As we get closer to Quarterfinals in the next few weeks, there is a lot more to discuss. 

• But as expected, athletes can and have made the 25 percent cutline without posting one of the three scored events or putting in a limited score. 
• Brooke Wells scored 107 reps on 24.3, which is seven thrusters at the second weight. In her video reviewing the workout, she stated that because of a shoulder injury she sustained about eight weeks ago, she had a game plan to make it through the workout and focus on the next stage.  

Here is where the Quarterfinals top 25 percent shook out:

Individual Quarterfinals — Top 25 Percent in Each Region

Team Quarterfinals — Top 25 Percent in Each Region (Minimum 50 Qualify)*

An interesting note on the Team Quarterfinals minimum: Africa has a total of 54 teams registered, so 50 of the 54 move on to the Quarterfinals.

Age Group Quarterfinals — Top 25 Percent Based on Age Group Worldwide, Minimum 200 Athletes

Here are the dates and info for the 2024 Quarterfinals:

• Individual & Age Group Quarterfinals Registration started on April 1 at noon PT
• Individual & Age Group QF starts on April 17 at noon PT 
• Individual & Age Group QF ends on April 22 at 5 p.m. PT

• Team Quarterfinals Registration started on April 1st at noon PT
• Team QF starts on April 3 at noon PT 
• Team QF ends on April 8 at 5 p.m. PT

• Check out the 2024 Quarterfinals Schedule

Check out @known_knowable on Instagram for additional analytics and info.

Featured image: @CharlotteFoerschlerPhoto / Instagram