Glassman Firms Up CrossFit Games Details in Exclusive Interview

In an exclusive interview with Girls Gone WOD Podcast released today, Greg Glassman firms up more details on the new format for the CrossFit Games season. This comes just two weeks after we broke the news about the new changes.

While most of the changes have come as a shock to the CrossFit community, Glassman revealed that he had already made the decision before the 2018 CrossFit Games begun.

“We’re going to complete the globalization of the [CrossFit] Games and maybe even CrossFit,” Glassman said on the podcast.

Looking at the opening ceremony, “It looked like a fourth of July parade. There’s nothing wrong with that but better than that would be a true reflection of the growth and the globalization of the [CrossFit] affiliate. We’ve got affiliates in 162 countries competing in the Open.”

Glassman also revealed discussions with Annie Thorisdottir about a previously unknown event in development in Iceland as a possible sanctioned event in the future.

“We just spoke with Annie Thorisdottir this morning,” Glassman said. “There’s going to be something in Iceland.”

Here are the new details Glassman shared.

So will there be 160+ teams?

No. Glassman said that the teams will be cropped from the 16 planned sanctioned events.

“We’re talking initially of in the first year or two, launching 16 sanctioned events that give a pathway to the Games, and those are where the teams are going to come from.”

What will the sanctioned events be?

Dubai CrossFit Championship was announced last week. Glassman said on the podcast that Granite Games, Wodapalooza and French Throwdown are “on board.”

How will they handle 160+ individual competitors for both male and females?

Likely an elimination system.

“We’re going to cull the herd into a very watchable and exciting number of people. What could happen is early in the week put 200 [athletes] through a task that leaves ten, then watching ten for two days.”

What about Teens and Masters divisions?

Uncertain, but appears they haven’t been cut out.

“In every country we’ll have crowned fittest man and woman, and we can do something similar of course with the juniors and masters.”