Abstract / Summary
Hyrox ® has rapidly grown into one of the most popular High-Intensity Functional Training (HIFT) competitions, combining running and strength-based stations in a comparatively standardised format. Although pacing and effort distribution are established determinants of performance in endurance sport and CrossFit ® events, no study has examined how these strategies differ by sex and performance level within Hyrox ® . This study aimed to characterize pacing and effort-distribution strategies among Hyrox ® PRO athletes and to determine whether they differ by sex and performance level. An observational, retrospective study analysed official Hyrox ® PRO results for 6,081 men and 2,341 women, the three fastest athletes were retained as a descriptive top-performance group, while the remaining performance groups were defined using z-scores of overall competition time. Relative time spent in each of the eight running segments and eight strength stations was calculated as a percentage of total race, running or strength time. Performance groups were compared using Welch’s ANOVA, sex × segment interactions using mixed-design ANOVA, and phase-by-phase sex differences across the race were tested using one-dimensional statistical parametric mapping (SPM1D), with Hedges’ g and partial eta squared (η²p) as effect sizes. Running pacing had a similar shape across performance groups, with small differences at kilometres 1, 2 and 8 (η² p ≤ .054). The SkiErg and RowErg accounted for a progressively smaller share of strength time as performance declined (η² p = .47–0.51), reflecting the disproportionate time lost by slower athletes at the loaded and bodyweight stations. Sex differences were trivial for running (η² p ≈ .005) but present at the strength stations in all performance groups (η² p = .060–0.098), with women devoting a larger share of time to the SkiErg, Burpee Broad Jump, RowErg and Farmers Carry, and men to the Sandbag Lunges and Wall Balls. Hyrox ® PRO athletes appear to share a common running pacing template, whereas performance differences concentrate in the loaded and bodyweight stations and sex differences in station time seem to follow the PRO category’s sex-specific load scaling. These findings provide a framework for developing pacing strategies adapted to athletes’ sex and competitive level.