If you practice Cross Training or are somewhat involved in the fitness world, you have surely heard of the Open Games. However, despite being known worldwide, many people are unclear about their functioning, structure, or -more importantly- if they can participate and challenge the most recognized athletes.
Don't worry. You are in the right place to discover everything that encompasses and how the "Olympics" of this sport have emerged, attracting more and more people. We will take a journey through the history Crossfit Open and the Games. Let's get to it!
The CrossFit Open Games are a qualifying phase for the next step: the Regionals.
The Open is a global competition with weekly workouts that anyone can perform (with scales/adaptations when applicable). It serves to:
- Measure your real level with a common standard.
- Compare yourself (year over year).
- Participate in the box environment and follow the season
Each workout is announced on a Thursday, and you have until Monday to submit your score. Everyone over 14 years old can register for the Open, without requirements, and must do the same workout.
How to participate step by step
1) Register
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Register on the official Open platform (account + registration).
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Choose affiliation (if competing from an affiliated box) or corresponding modality.
2) Do the workout (when published)
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Read the standard, permitted material, and scoring format.
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If you are going to validate it (judge / video), prepare everything before starting.
3) Submit your score
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Submit the result within the weekly window.
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If a video is required or recommended, upload it with the correct framing and without cuts.
4) Repeat if you want to improve
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You can repeat the workout within the week to improve your score (respecting submission rules).
How to prepare (without training "like crazy")
The week before
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Prioritize sleep + mobility + technique.
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Lower the volume a bit if you are very loaded.
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Practice standards: range of motion, counting, transitions.
The day of the workout
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Warm up more than usual (10–20 min extra if there are loads or gymnastics).
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Rehearse 1–2 key transitions.
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Decide your series plan before starting.
26.1: what it is, who crushed it, and how to tackle it with control
26.1 is a "for time" with a time cap of 12:00:
- 20 wall balls + 18 box jump-overs,
- 30 wall balls + 18 box jump-overs,
- 40 wall balls + 18 box step-overs with a ball,
- 66 wall balls + 18 box step-overs with a ball,
- and a symmetrical return (40/30/20 wall balls with 18 box jump-overs in between).
Who did it (live announcement): Colten Mertens, Jayson Hopper, Dallin Pepper, and Austin Hatfield.
Who won 26.1: Colten Mertens with 11:16.10 (2nd Hopper 11:32.90; Pepper and Hatfield at the cap with reps).
What you need (equipment and setup)
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1 Wall Ball (only one can be used):
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Women Rx: 6 kg at 2.74 m target (9 ft)
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Men Rx: 9 kg at 3.05 m target (10 ft)
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1 box:
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Women Rx: 50.8 cm
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Men Rx: 60.96 cm
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Place the box at least 3.05 m from the wall of the wall ball (safety).
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Tiebreak: time is taken after each box block (last block completed)
How to approach the first WOD of the Open 2026
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Don't burn out in the first 20/30 wall balls. The workout is decided in the central block (40 + 66) and how your legs feel.
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Wall balls: aim for sustainable blocks from the start (e.g.: 20 unbroken if you can; 30 in 2; 40 in 2–3; 66 with short pre-planned breaks).
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Box jump-overs: maintain a steady pace, clean transitions; avoid "all-out" jumps that spike your heart rate.
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Step-overs with the ball: here is where your quadriceps will burn. Maintain a steady cadence and breathe; don't turn this into a sprint.
With this, you already have the essentials: what 26.1 is, what equipment you need, and how to approach it to survive the central block. Now for the practical part: warm up your legs and shoulders with intention, decide your wall ball blocks before starting, and keep the box at a "sustainable" pace. If you do it this way, you'll have the option to push at the end instead of dragging yourself.
26.2: what it is, who took it in the announcement, and how to approach it with control
26.2 is a "for time" with a time cap of 15:00:
- 24 m of dumbbell overhead walking lunge
- 20 alternating dumbbell snatches
- 20 pull-ups
- 24 m of dumbbell overhead walking lunge
- 20 alternating dumbbell snatches
- 20 chest-to-bar pull-ups
- 24 m of dumbbell overhead walking lunge
- 20 alternating dumbbell snatches
- 20 muscle-ups
Who did it (live announcement): Lucy Campbell, Mirjam von Rohr, and Aimee Cringle.
Who won the live announcement of 26.2: Lucy Campbell, with 6:50. Then Aimee Cringle (6:57) and Mirjam von Rohr (8:08) followed.
Official winner of the 26.2 Open: the results are not yet finalized. The official window to submit scores ends on March 9, 2026, at 17:00 PT.
What you need (equipment and setup)
1 dumbbell:
Women Rx: 15 kg
Men Rx: 22.5 kg
1 pull-up bar for pull-ups and chest-to-bar.
1 set of rings for muscle-ups.
Lunge distance:
24 m total per round, divided into 6 m segments. You must turn every 6 m.
How to approach the second wod of the Open 2026
Don't get carried away with the dumbbell. This workout is not won in the snatches. It is lost when you arrive exhausted at the bar and rings.
Overhead walking lunges: steady pace. Don't speed up due to adrenaline. The goal here is to advance without frying your shoulder or core.
Dumbbell snatches: they should be fluid. Better control and breathing than absurd speed.
Pull-ups: if you're struggling, stop before failure. A clean 10-10 is better than exhausting yourself out of pride.
Chest-to-bar: this is where the real filter begins. Don't start too strong if you don't master them fresh and with fatigue.
Muscle-ups: have a plan. If they're not very solid, better short sets or quick singles than missing reps.
In a workout where grip and efficiency on the bar make the difference, having some Grips that give you grip, protection, and confidence can help you maintain the pace when it gets tough. Equip yourself with your favorite Grips and add repetitions without fear!
The real key to 26.2 is this: protect grip and shoulder from the first round. The lunges and snatches seem like "the easy part," but they're exactly what empties you before the real gymnastics. If you overdo it at the start, the chest-to-bar gets stuck, and muscle-ups become a lottery.
With this, you already have the essentials: what 26.2 is, what equipment you need, and how to approach it without burning out in the first half. Warm up your shoulders, lats, kip, and transition to rings well. And, above all, decide before starting how you will break up pull-ups, chest-to-bar, and muscle-ups. In this wod improvisation it usually turns out expensive.
26.3: more bar, more fatigue and zero free breaks
26.3 closes the Open 2026 with a 16-minute for time workout that combines burpees over the bar, cleans, and thrusters, increasing the load in three blocks. It is a very clear test of muscular endurance, the ability to maintain technique under fatigue, and effort management when the bar starts to really weigh.
26.3 is:
- 2 rounds of:
- 12 burpees over the bar
- 12 cleans with weight 1
- 12 burpees over the bar
- 12 thrusters with weight 1
- 2 rounds of:
- 12 burpees over the bar
- 12 cleans with weight 2
- 12 burpees over the bar
- 12 thrusters with weight 2
- 2 rounds of:
- 12 burpees over the bar
- 12 cleans with weight 3
- 12 burpees over the bar
- 12 thrusters with weight 3
Time cap: 16 minutes.
Official weights Rx:
- Women: 29, 34, and 38 kg
- Men: 43, 52, and 61 kg
What 26.3 usually measures
This workout does not reward going crazy. It rewards those who know how to move efficiently, breathe during burpees, touch the bar without losing time, and reach the last block with room to continue being functional. The cleans punish the grip and back if you speed up too much, and the thrusters trigger systemic fatigue when you're already very loaded.
Basic strategy to tackle it
The key is to break as little as possible from the start, but without entering debt too soon. In burpees, the most profitable thing is to maintain a constant and clean pace. In cleans, it's important to avoid sets that force you into a long recovery. And in thrusters, it's advisable to respect the bar from the first block, because each extra cut in the last weights penalizes you much more. This becomes even more important because the clock doesn't stop and each athlete must change their own plates during the workout.
Typical mistakes of 26.3
One of the most common mistakes is treating the first weight as if it were a quick warm-up. It is not. If you overdo it there, you reach the second block with a high pulse and the third without the ability to hold the bar. Another clear mistake is improvising weight changes. In 26.3 that also counts, because any clumsy transition steals seconds and cuts your rhythm. CrossFit also makes it clear that only one bar can be used, with collars placed and no external help to change the load.
If 26.1 punished volume and 26.2 required technical control, 26.3 finishes the Open with a very simple combination on paper and very hard when executed at real pace. Here, the winner is not the one who pushes the hardest at the start, but the one who best manages legs, breathing, and bar until the last thruster.
Questions about the Open 2026
When is 26.1 / 26.2 / 26.3 released?
26.1: February 26, 2026. 26.2: March 5, 2026. 26.3: March 12, 2026.
Until when can I submit the score each week?
Week 1 until March 3, week 2 until March 10, week 3 until March 17 (according to official calendar).
Can I do it from home?
It depends on the workout, the equipment, and the validation requirements. If you compete “seriously,” review standards, judge and video.
Can I repeat the workout?
Yes, within the weekly window, and you upload the best result according to current rules.
What happens if I don't upload a result?
It is usually considered 0 for that week or doesn't count, and it sinks you in the rankings.
What should I prioritize: going all out or doing it cleanly?
Do it cleanly. Mistakes, no-reps, and long breaks cost you dearly.
The Open is won with three things: pace, order and consistency.
Save this page: we will update each workout (26.1, 26.2, and 26.3) with a quick strategy and checklist guide.
Do you want to be prepared for the Open 2026?
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Equip yourself with the basics: jump ropes, Grips and accessories.
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And come with a plan: pacing + transitions + standard.
A brief history of the Open Games
However, to better understand what the Open are, we need to take a journey through the years. From the moment the Games were created with tan only a few participants to what we know today.
Early years of the Games
The Games were born in 2007 by Greg Glassman, founder of the brand CrossFit® and Dave Castro, a former-Navy SEAL who has held the position of competition director since its inception. Hence the nature of the CrossFit was a high-intensity workout aimed at military, firefighters, police, and other security and defense forces but, eventually, ended up attracting followers from all over the world.
The first time the CrossFit Games were held was on June 30, 2007 and took place at Dave Castro's family ranch in California. At that time, athletes who wanted to participate only had to travel to the location to register, be of legal age, and be associated with the CrossFit brand gyms. This first edition hosted, tan only, 60 athletes and the prize was 500 dollars. During the first two years, many people began to take notice of this competition and, due to the hundreds of participation requests, the organization was forced to create a preliminary phase where registrants would have to qualify beforehand if they wanted to compete in the final event of the Games. This is how the Regionals of the CrossFit Games were born in 2009. At that time, the team category was also created, which had to be composed of four members, two men and two women.
The Open of CrossFit, the Masters, and Reebok's entry
In 2010, the competition had expanded worldwide and, again, the organization had to make changes. Thus, a new classification called the Open of CrossFit emerged. The Open of CrossFit consisted of a country-based classification where athletes had to submit their results in the form of a video online or through verification by a licensed coach CrossFit, in order to reach the Regionals and be the best of the 17 regions - 12 of them spread between the US and Canada, and the remaining 5 distributed across the other continents-. Additionally, due to the growing number of participants, the competition was moved to the Home Depot Center - currently known as Dignity Health Sports Park-. The number of team members also had to be modified, changing from four to six. On the other hand, the Masters category was created, which included men and women from the age of 55. This way, the competition was balanced in terms of physical conditions due to the age difference with the younger ones. Year after year, the competition became more popular not only among athletes but also among brands. Such was the success that, in 2011, the brand Reebok became the official sponsor of the CrossFit Games. With this entry, the prizes began to have a value 10 times greater.
There were no more doubts. This "new" sport was achieving success and positioning itself.
The Regional and Sanctionals
In 2015, the classification system underwent changes again and the Super Regional or The Regionals emerged. Eight regional events were formed - instead of 17-. 20 women, 20 men, and 30 mixed teams per region qualified for the Super Regionals, to fight for a spot in the final event of the CrossFit Games where a total of 40 women, 40 men, and 40 mixed teams participated. In 2017, the location was changed again and moved to the Alliant Energy Center sports complex, located in Wisconsin.
In 2018, the organization made the decision to eliminate the Regionals due to the excessive economic investment it entailed. However, the founder of CrossFit, Greg Glassman, announced that he would begin collaborating in independent competitions that would directly catapult the winners to the CrossFit Games qualification. This is how the Sanctioned Events or Sanctionals emerged.
Coronavirus, controversy with Reebok and CrossFit Games 2020
In 2020, due to a controversial tweet published by Greg Glassman, creator of the CrossFit brand, Reebok decided to unilaterally break off contract negotiations with the training program that was set to expire at the end of 2020, and hundreds of affiliated gyms cut ties with the brand. The CrossFit Games 2020 were in jeopardy. They lost sponsors and many athletes declined to attend the championship. As a result, Dave Castro, who was co-director of the training, became CEO of CrossFit and the CrossFit Games were saved. On June 24, Eric Roza bought the company and became the new CEO. Thus, after the global Coronavirus pandemic, the CrossFit Games underwent changes again. They were postponed to October 23, returned to Dave Castro's ranch, and the public was removed.
And with those changes (format, venues, sponsors, and global context), it has become clear that the competition has never been "something fixed": it adapts every year to remain measurable, scalable, and relevant.
Therefore, if you are looking for the Open 2026 today, the important thing is not just the history, but how it works now: schedule, weekly structure, how to submit results, and what you need to compete with guarantees. Let's take a look.
