As Hyrox's popularity soars, fitness-racing hybrid chases Olympic dream

Aug 19 : From around 650 competitors at its first event to more than a million participants worldwide today, Hyrox has gone from niche fitness challenge to global phenomenon with its sights set on the Olympics in less than a decade.

A structured indoor activity divided into eight segments, each involving a one-kilometre run followed by a fitness exercise, Hyrox attracts tens of thousands of participants to its biggest events.

Its mix of stop-start runs, easy-to-learn exercises, competition and community has proved popular with everyone from elite athletes to everyday exercisers, and organisers believe the sky is the limit in terms of growth. 

"We have close to 1.5 million people at some stage this year participating in our events," Hyrox's India head Deepak Raj told Reuters.

"We're in 35-plus countries, 100-plus cities, and each of the events are getting bigger in participation levels.

"It's hard to put a ceiling (on it) when we know that there are gyms where some people haven't even done a Hyrox, or haven't maybe even heard of it in some countries."

Hyrox was developed in 2017 by Christian Toetzke and Moritz Fuerste, who won hockey gold medals for Germany in the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics. 

The prospect of it being included in the Olympics is not just wishful thinking, after World Triathlon approved the format under the name 'Hyathlon' this year.

While Raj said it was too soon to make a case for the sport's inclusion in 2028, they are aiming for a spot on the programme of the 2032 and 2036 Games.

"In the world championships earlier this year in Stockholm, we had 101 countries represented. It has become a global sport. Standards have been established," Raj said.

"The 2028 Olympics was obviously a little too soon, given the