As we look forward to the new year, many of us may be thinking about end-of-year festivities and fun gatherings that bring people together. And we want to give you one more exciting thing to talk about as you meet up with your friends from the gym to ring in 2023: how you’re going to plan your training schedule and set your goals for the 2023 NOBULL CrossFit Games season. We’re releasing the season details earlier this year so you can plan with confidence and put your best foot forward in the year ahead.
By participating in the Games season, training hard and accepting the challenge, we show what's magic about our global community. We share CrossFit with more people who hear, watch, and experience what this community is doing — from the first-place finisher to the last — and every year that leads to new people joining this awesome community.
The magic of CrossFit is never more fully on display than in CrossFit gyms during the Open, when hundreds of thousands of people surprise themselves and each other with what they’re able to accomplish as a result of their training. This is the magic that not only fuels a whole year of training and continued growth but can transform lives. During the Open, CrossFit affiliates everywhere celebrate hard workers and challenge chasers, some of whom will make it all the way to the CrossFit Games.
We can’t wait, and in 2023, we’re taking steps to improve the CrossFit Games season. If you shared your feedback on the 2022 season with us, thank you; it led to some important changes that we think will strengthen the Sport of Fitness in 2023 and the years ahead.
Those changes, along with other important details and dates, are outlined below. We’ll share more information over the next few months. Check back for additional updates.
The Flow of the Season
Everyone’s competition season will start with the worldwide Open. From there, the competition season for the individuals, teams, and age-group athletes will follow the same format, progressing through Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and finally, for a select few, the CrossFit Games. Stay tuned for additional news about the adaptive competition season in 2023 and beyond.
Photo by Meg Ellery
Big-Picture Updates
New Competition Map: Athletes will compete in regions based on their country of citizenship, starting with the Open and carrying on through the Quarterfinals and Semifinals. The most notable change to the map for individual and team athletes is the division of North America into two competition regions. This eliminates the need for a seeding process during Semifinals. As soon as you register for 2023, you will know your competition road map from the Open to your designated Semifinal.
Standardized Programming: CrossFit will standardize and program all tests for the entire season, including all of 2023’s Semifinal tests.
Advancing From the Semifinals to the Games: There will be a baseline number of Games-qualifying spots for each Semifinal. In lieu of the Last-Chance Qualifier, the final Games-qualifying spots will be allocated from the Semifinals according to a ranking system. More details coming soon.
Team Eligibility: All team athletes will be required to individually perform the Open tests from their affiliate. After the Open, teams will then select six athletes (four competing members and two alternates) who will compete in the Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and Finals together. That six-person team is locked for the season.
Updates to the Adaptive Competition: There will be new eligibility requirements to compete in the adaptive competition. More information will be shared soon.
Photo by Johany Jutras
Key Updates by Competition Stage
Here is a breakdown of key updates for each stage of competition.
The Open
- The CrossFit Open will take place over three weeks, from Feb. 16 - March 6.
- Athletes must complete the Open workouts at an affiliate (and have scores validated by the affiliate manager) or submit a video. Now that pandemic restrictions are no longer in place in most areas around the world, we are inviting athletes to return to affiliates to complete their workouts. Registered judges will no longer be able to validate scores in place of affiliate managers.
- Adaptive athletes will have the option to scale Open workouts, modifying the workout based on their ability.
CrossFit Ballito | Photo by Mark McDermot
Quarterfinals
- 10% of individuals and athletes in each age group and 25% of teams will advance from the Open to the Quarterfinals.
- This year, the Team Quarterfinal and Age-Group Quarterfinal will be held during the same week. Each competition will have two 24-hour score submission windows instead of three. Teams will compete Wednesday through Friday, and age-group athletes will compete Friday through Sunday.
- Athletes are welcome to compete in any Quarterfinal they have qualified for and may compete in multiple Quarterfinal competitions. For example, athletes who qualify for both the Age-Group and Individual Quarterfinals may compete in both.
Important dates:
- Individual Quarterfinal: March 16 - 19 ONLINE
- Team Quarterfinal: March 29 - 31 ONLINE
- Age-Group Quarterfinal: March 31 - April 2 ONLINE
Photo by @sierra_prime
Semifinals
- The top 30 in each age group from Quarterfinals advance to the online Semifinals.
- The top individual athletes and teams will advance to one of seven in-person Semifinals around the world.
| Region | # of Individuals Advancing | # of Teams Advancing |
|---|---|---|
| North America East | 60 men/women | 40 teams |
| North America West | 60 men/women | 40 teams |
| Europe | 60 men/women | 40 teams |
| Asia | 30 men/women | 20 teams |
| Africa | 30 men/women | 20 teams |
| Oceania | 30 men/women | 20 teams |
| South America | 30 men/women | 20 teams |
Sixty men, 60 women, and 40 teams will be invited to compete at North America East, North America West, and the Europe Semifinal. Thirty men, 30 women, and 20 teams will be invited to compete at each of the Semifinals in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and South America.
There will no longer be a seeding process for Semifinals. Instead, athletes will know when they register for the Open which Semifinal competition they may qualify for should they reach that stage.
- CrossFit will standardize and program all tests for Semifinals.
- CrossFit will operate all the Semifinals in the U.S. (2) and Europe (1).
- CrossFit will partner with organizers to operate the Semifinals in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and South America.
- Individual athletes and teams from the same affiliate will compete at the same Semifinal.
- Each Semifinal competition will receive a minimum designated number of Games-qualifying spots.
- Additional spots for the CrossFit Games Finals will then be allocated from the seven Semifinals according to their respective strength of field.
- There will not be an additional online Last-Chance Qualifier stage of competition.
- With a minimum number of Games-qualifying spots guaranteed at each Semifinal, the total number of athletes invited to the CrossFit Games will stay at 40, the same as last year.
Important dates:
- Age-Group Semifinal: April 28 - 30 ONLINE
- Individual and Team Semifinals: May 18 - June 4 (3 weeks) IN PERSON
Marquan Jones at the 2021 Mid-Atlantic CrossFit Challenge | Photo by @flsportsguy
The CrossFit Games
- The CrossFit Games will use a six-day format from Tuesday, Aug. 1, through Sunday, Aug. 6.
- The total number of Games spots will be the same as before.
Photo by Johany Jutras
What’s Coming up Next
Stay tuned to Games.CrossFit.com for more updates on the 2023 season, including the release of the Rulebook in mid-November, the beginning of Open registration, info about worldwide rankings, and news on updated eligibility requirements for competing in the adaptive divisions.
Check out 2023 season updates for the adaptive division HERE.