2024 CrossFit Games Worldwide Rankings and Strength of Field, Explained
Are you confused by the Strength of Field calculation and the allocation of CrossFit Games spots?
If so, you are not alone.
When Adrian Bozman, CrossFit’s Competition Director, first explained Strength of Field and Qualifying for the Games last year, it made sense. But time has passed and memories may have become fuzzy. Additionally, the changes made this year introduced additional complications to the situation.
So, let’s walk it out.
[Related: 2024 CrossFit Games Europe Semifinal Preview: How To Watch, Rosters, and Schedule]
CrossFit’s Worldwide Rankings at a Glance
CrossFit introduced the Worldwide Rankings (WWR) in 2023 as a system to objectively allocate qualifying spots to the CrossFit Games from each region.
- The rankings are based on a points system that uses the results from the previous two years of competition.
- Those numbers are updated after each competition within the Games season. Athletes have four opportunities per year to earn points and improve their WWR: the Open, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and CrossFit Games.
- Each competition is worth progressively more points.
- In the Open and Quarterfinals, points are awarded based on percentile finish. At Semifinals and the Games, points are awarded based on the leaderboard finish.
- The Open: 1,000 points maximum
- Quarterfinals: 2,000 points maximum
- Semifinals: 4,000 points maximum
- The Games: 10,000 points maximum
- The D’Hondt method is then employed to allocate spots based on the total number of athletes ranked in the top 100 in each region.
- The D’Hondt method is a process used by governments around the world to allocate seats based on proportional representation. The process involves using rounds of calculation, awarding one seat (or, in our case, a Games spot) after each round of calculation.
The WWR and Strength of Field are explained on the Games website. But with the help of some resources created by analyst Mike Halpin from Known and Knowable on Instagram, we are able to shed some more light on these numbers and how they are calculated.
The Big Picture
The Strength of Field (number of Games spots per region) is based only on the number of athletes from each region ranked in the top 100 in the WWR.
Every athlete ranked one to 100 counts the same.
- Laura Horvath (ranked #1 in the WWR with 27,440 points) = one athlete in the top 100 for Europe.
- Grace Walton (ranked #77 in the WWR with 6,650 points) = one athlete in the top 100 for Oceania.
New this year: Only athletes who registered for Semifinals were counted in the Strength of Field calculations. Last year, the calculation was based on all athletes registered for Quarterfinals.
- If last year’s system was used, Grace Walton would be outside the top 100 in the WWR released by CrossFit and would not factor into the calculations. As shown above, she’s #77 in the new rankings.
Why it matters: Including only Semifinals athletes in this calculation makes sense in a way, as their performances are the only ones that will matter in the final stages of competition this season.
- However, the alteration replaced 28 women and 20 men from the top 100 in the WWR.
Why Is This Significant?
The “Big Three” regions: All 28 women and 20 men removed from the top 100 in the WWR list are from North America East, North America West, or Europe.
Half of the women added to the list are from the other four regions: Oceania, South America, Africa, and Asia.
Below is the net change in the top 100 women based on WWR after those changes were made:
- North America East -9
- Europe -4
- North America West -1
- Oceania +5
- Asia +4
- Africa +3
- South America +2
[Related: 2024 CrossFit Games Asia Semifinal Preview: How To Watch, Rosters, and Schedule]
While each region will have 40 men and 40 women competing at Semifinals, the number of athletes who competed in Quarterfinals varied greatly from region to region, as did the qualification rate.
- In Asia, for instance, the women’s qualification rate was 8.3 percent (40 athletes qualified for Semifinals out of the 480 who registered for Quarterfinals), while the qualification rate from North America East was .81 percent (40 athletes qualified for Semifinals out of a starting field of 4,932 in Quarterfinals).
The Result
The adjustment impacted the number of qualifying spots for multiple regions.
Here is how this change to the WWR system changed the Strength of Field calculation and, therefore, CrossFit Games field spot allocation from 2023 to 2024:
- North America West: Women -1 | Men unchanged
- North America East: Women -1 | Men -1
- Europe: Women -1 | Men -1
- Oceania: Women +1 | Men +1
- South America: Women +1 | Men +1
- Asia: Women +1 | Men unchanged
- Africa: Unchanged
The Bottom Line
Every year brings new changes to the CrossFit season. With those changes comes progress and, occasionally, confusion.
What is certain, though, is that in Fort Worth this summer, we will end up with 40 incredibly fit men and women from regions spanning the world as the sport continues to expand globally.
More CrossFit Semifinals Coverage
Check out these other stories as we head into the 2024 CrossFit Semifinals:
- 2024 CrossFit Semifinals — Individual and Team Workouts Released
- How To Watch the 2024 CrossFit Games Semifinals
- Move Fast and Lift Heavy: 5 of Our Favorite CrossFit Semifinals Moments
Featured image: fran_kie / Shutterstock