7 qualifying HYROX events across the world had culminated in the Elite 15 HYROX World Championships in Sweden. The field of athletes was stacked.
Lauren Weeks held 3 World Championships under her belt as she stepped out onto the floor. McElheny brought with her a varied running background, with excellent 800m, 5k, steeplechase and marathon times. Joanna Wietrzyk held the WR and was on extremely good form after a series of Majors wins. Linda Meier was the reigning champion. The race was far from pre-determined.
The Athletes
Here are the rest of the times from the female athletes prior to the race.
Joanna Wietrzyk — 54:25 (WR)
Lauren Weeks — 54:54
Alyssa McElheny — 55:56
Lena Putters — 56:30
Sinéad Bent — 56:54
Vivian Tafuto — 57:32
Seka Arning — 58:01
Emilie Dahmen — 58:24
Stefanie Oswald — 58:41
Linda Meier — 59:16
Lucy Procter — 59:16
Gabrielle Nikora-Baker — 1:00:00
Jess Pettrow — 1:00:24
Calypso Sheridan — 1:00:33
Morgan Schulz — 1:00:36
The Race
Weeks and Wietrzyk went head to head straight out of the gates. Followed by Bent, Tafuto and Proctor. McElheny sat behind in fourth. Slightly behind the initial early pace.
Ski Erg
Athletes were consistent and fast through the ski erg. Generally maintaining the positions in which they entered the stations. However, Dahmen was the anomaly, as she made up a lot of ground on the ski erg. The athlete from The Netherlands previously commented on how she likes to pace the first run easily, as she is exceptionally confident with the ski erg. In the race she moved up 10 places during the first station.
Wietrzyk took the lead out of the station, however Weeks passed her once again. McElheny was still smiling as she eased into the second running portion.
Sled Push
Wietrzyk and Weeks were neck and neck through the first sled push section. Weeks took quick steps with very small steps.
Tip: Don’t go too low with your body positioning on the sled pushes, as this can often lead to dizziness as you progress back into the next run.
McElheny followed Wietrzyk out of the sled push. Bent and Tafuto also passed Weeks. Sheridan also smashed out a superb effort on the sled with 02:07 to set the best time.
Wietrzyk started to open up a slight lead ahead of McElheny as they progressed through the next running portion. Lucy Proctor made up four places.
Sled Pull
Wietrzyk was careful and methodical as usual. McElheny even managed to pass Wietrzyk periodically. Bent didn’t properly finish the station and had to go back to finish the pull. Sheridan managed to pass her during this time. Weeks continued to drop back.
Tip: On the sled pulls, make sure to look down now and then and stay aware of the lines so that you don’t step over the lines and get penalized. Wietrzyk looks down on every single pull.
McElheny was first back onto the run after the completion of the station. Wietrzyk became the hunter. This was to prove ominous for the rest of the race.
Morgan Schulz was forced to withdraw from the race at this point.
Burpee Broad Jumps
McElheny was quick to drop back to the floor during the burpees which allowed her to open up even more of a lead. Sheridan also established a fast cadence. She used her knee to stand up on every rep.
McElheny opened up a significant gap and Sinead Bent went back out onto the track in second. Wietrzyk ran in wrong direction for a second, allowing Sheridan to close the gap between her and the Aussie.
Rowing
McElheny was still smiling as she sat down on the rower and got to work. She held a 01:56 pace. Bent moved onto the rower second. Wietrzyk was in third and Sheridan in fourth. Weeks was in fifth. Tafuto received a penalty.
McElheny maintained her lead as she headed out onto the next lap.
Farmers Carry
Sinead Bent absolutely sprinted out onto the course. The English athlete was eventually beaten by Wietrzyk. Wietrzyk made up a lot of ground but McElheny was still a long way out in front. Weeks followed Sheridan back onto the run.
McElheny still looked comfortable on the run before she entered the sandbag lunges in first place. Still smiling.
Sandbag Lunges
McElheny had a few mini stumbles but still stayed strong. Sheridan was relentless with shorter strides and a rapid pace. Wietrzyk lost 3 seconds to race leader McElheny during the station. A 03:12 time for Lucy Proctor allowed her to progress further up the leaderboard.
McElheny had a sizeable lead as she entered the final run. She opened the gap to around 45 seconds.
Wall Balls
Wietrzyk was 15 reps behind as she entered the wall balls. Bent was right on the shoulder of Wietrzyk.
McElheny completed the 100 reps and crossed the finish line in first place with a huge smile on her face. Wietrzyk came in second and Bent rounded out the podium after rounding out the podium. Sheridan cartwheeled her way across the finish line. Weeks came in fifth.
McElheny Makes History
Alyssa McElheny took the World Title in her debut World Championships race. The race took place on Thursday, but the US athlete had been unable to walk on Monday after hurting it rolling her ankle coming off a bike. She exclaimed that the “plan was to run a safe race and get on the podium” but that she felt free and smooth as she moved out onto the competition floor.
“I’m over the moon” she commented about her performance.
We spoked to McElheny recently about how you can build your HYROX skills and performances on top of a running background.
It was also a fantastic performance by Sinead Bent.
Joanna Wietrzyk secured second, but was the first athlete to congratulate McElheny on her win.
Final Leaderboard
| Athlete | Time |
|---|---|
| Alyssa McElheny | 56:59 |
| Joanna Wietrzyk | 57:14 |
| Sinéad Bent | 57:24 |
| Calypso Sheridan | 58:16 |
| Lauren Weeks | 58:47 |
| Lucy Procter | 59:05 |
| Emilie Dahmen | 1:00:04 |
| Lena Putters | 1:00:09 |
| Gabrielle Nikora-Baker | 1:00:21 |
| Stefanie Oswald | 1:00:31 |
| Seka Arning | 1:00:41 |
| Jess Pettrow | 1:01:05 |
| Vivian Tafuto | 1:01:52 |
| Linda Meier | 1:06:09 |
