How to run a CrossFit competition at your gym

Choose the workouts

Three or four workouts that test different things, each with a clear standard.

Most throwdowns run three or four workouts: something short and fast, something longer, a strength or skill piece, and sometimes a final for the top athletes. Mix time domains so no one type of athlete wins everything.

For each workout write down the movements, reps, loads per division, the time cap and how it is scored: for time (with a cap), for reps or rounds, or a heaviest lift. Publish the workouts a week or two before so athletes can plan.

Set divisions and teams

Rx and Scaled for men and women, with teams if you have the numbers.

Rx and Scaled divisions for men and women cover most boxes. Add Masters or Teens if your members ask for them, and pairs or teams of three or four for a social event. Keep loads and movement standards per division written down where every judge can see them.

On HRP each division is its own category with its own leaderboard, and pairs and teams book together with every member signing their own waiver. See how it works

Open registration and waivers

Online entry, payment and a waiver from every athlete.

Take entries online so you know numbers per division before you build heats. Collect payment and the waiver at the same time, with a parent or guardian signing for anyone under 18.

Build heats and a schedule

Heat size is your lanes; leave reset time between heats.

Your heat size is the number of lanes you can set up with full kit. Leave time between heats for judges to reset and for the next athletes to warm up. Run the biggest divisions first and finish with the final, when the room is fullest.

Share heat times with athletes a few days before so nobody misses their start.

Brief your judges

One judge per athlete for most workouts, briefed on every standard.

Competitions are judged one to one: a judge counts reps, calls no-reps and records the score. Run a briefing with the standards for every movement and a quick practice so everyone calls them the same way.

Record scores as they happen

Time, reps or kilos entered by the judge at the end of each heat.

Scorecards on clipboards mean someone typing results into a spreadsheet while the next heat starts, and mistakes on the leaderboard. Judges entering the score on a phone the moment the heat ends removes both.

On HRP judges open a link on their own phone and record each athlete's time, reps, calories or kilos as the heat ends. No accounts or hardware needed. See how it works

Rank with a points table

Points for placing in each workout, lowest or highest total wins.

Most throwdowns rank on placing points: first in a workout scores 1 (or the most points), and the totals decide the podium. It stops one huge score in a single workout deciding everything, and it is easy for athletes to follow.

HRP ranks by total time, total score or points, and keeps a points table across a series if you run several events in a season. See how it works

Show the leaderboard live

A screen with the standings after every heat.

Put the leaderboard on a TV so athletes and spectators see the standings move after each heat. It builds the tension for the final and keeps people in the building.

Publish results and announce the next one

Final standings the same afternoon.

Publish the final standings and every athlete's scores as soon as the last heat finishes, then tell everyone when the next one is.