What to Expect From The CrossFit Open
This 2021 season is kicking off with the much anticipated three-week CrossFit Open starting on March 11th and running through to the 29th. Eric Roza’s goal for this years open has been a huge focus for him since taking over, he said “Overwhelmingly, people want to see the Open go back to where it’s always been prior to 2019”. With registrations going live on 7th Jan it looks like he’s keeping to his word of bringing the open back stronger. He is seeming to recognise the opportunity the open offers for affiliates around the world to showcase what CrossFit is all about, and how accessible it is to drive up memberships and more interest.
You can register here >> REGISTER FOR THE OPEN
Interesting Fact
The peak for registrations was back in 2018 with 429,157 athletes registering and logging a score that year, which is in stark comparison to the 239, 106 athletes who registered last year. After announcing that the CrossFit open will lead “cohesively into the CrossFit Games”, Roza has repeated his sentiment that he wants to try to get 500,000 registrations for the open, which would break previous records.
How Will The CrossFit Open Run?
The 2021 rulebook came out on the 7th January outlining plans for the Open and Quaterfinals which gives a good 2 months before the open kicks off for athletes to prepare.
This year, the Open will be “the most accessible in CrossFit history”. It has been designed with flexibility in mind so that athletes can either compete from the box, OR, the safety of their homes should their box/ gym be forced to close or remain shut, or if they are isolating / have health concerns.
2021 CrossFit Season Calendar * (Source – games.crossfit.com)
| Date | Event | Location (Format) |
| January 7 | Registration starts | games.crossfit.com |
| Week of March 8 | Open – Week 1 | Local gyms, athletes’ homes (online) |
| Week of March 15 | Open – Week 2 | Local gyms, athletes’ homes (online) |
| Week of March 22 | Open – Week 3 | Local gyms, athletes’ homes (online) |
| Week of April 5 | Quarterfinals – Individual | Local gyms (online) |
| Week of April 19 | Quarterfinals – Teams | Local gyms (online) |
| Week of May 3 | Masters/Teens Qualifier | Local gyms (online) |
| Week of May 24 | Semifinals – Week 1 | Worldwide (in-person*) |
| Week of May 31 | Semifinals – Week 2 | Worldwide (in-person*) |
| Week of June 7 | Semifinals – Week 3 | Worldwide (in-person*) |
| Week of June 14 | Semifinals – Week 4 | Worldwide (in-person*) |
| Week of June 28 | Last-chance qualifier | Local gyms (online) |
| Week of July 26 | CrossFit Games Finals | Madison, Wisconsin (in-person*) |
*With online contingency plan, if needed
Getting Ready For The Open With BoxMate
Many box owners will welcome the news of the later March start date, hopefully meaning more chance of the box doors being open again. Not to mention, the shorter 3 week Open should make the logistics more simple.
With the Competitions feature in BoxMate (PLUS users only) we can support you to run the Open at your facility smoothly. You can use comps to set up the open in your facility and let your members log scores for each open workout and see live leaderboards too!
*ALL NEW* Squads Feature
Squads (PLUS ONLY)
This is a new element to our competitions feature and we think you guys will absolutely love this, especially with the Open on the horizon!
Squads lets you group your members to add another layer of fun to the competition! Whether this is team Red v Blue, Girls V Boys, or maybe even 5 separate squads with a different coach heading up each one!
Each squad will have a group of competitors in – whether these are individual competitors or teams. The squad will then work together throughout the competition and any team or individual points will go towards the Squads grand total.
Competition & Squads Tutorials
Learn Tutorial – For you & Your Coaches ** Check out the new Squads Feature at 6.20mins in**
How Do I Register for a competition? – To send to your Members!
We can’t wait to see those Open scores & workouts rolling in in March! Make sure to tag us on insta in your Open prep and WODs so we can share in the love!
Thanks for reading Team! 💪