HYROX went to Poland for the first time on 9th September 2023 as part of the FIWE Fitness Trade Show in Warsaw. This was only the second race in Europe of the 2023/24 season, and the first since Rimini back at the start of June 2023. There were some big names in attendance, and some controvery as well with a particularly slow course, and particularly slow sleds (more on those below) highlighting that there is still a high degree of variability between HYROX courses.
Warsaw 2023 Course Layout
Warsaw 2023 World Championships Qualifying Places
2023 Race Review
Men’s Pro
The Men’s Pro was won by Erik Woodward in a time of 01:03:10. Second was Graham Halliday in 01:04:11, closely followed by Martin Michelius in 01:04:25. Erik actually raced in the second Mens Pro heat of the day, with Graham and Martin in the first.
All of these guys have run much faster times than this in the past. For example, Graham (you can watch my interview with him here), who is the UK’s fastest HYROX athlete, and who finished 5th at the 2023 World Championships, has a PB of 57:35. By all accounts the venue was very humid which presumably could have contributed towards the slower times, but the sled pull was particularly difficult too. Why that is I dont think anybody can be sure. There were rumours that the wrong weight was put on the sled (but I personally dont think that was the case). I suspect the humidity contributed, and perhaps the carpets on which the sleds were on. Erik, Graham and Martin are all very strong athletes and certainly none of them found it easy, and I know some athletes had to pull out of the race because of it (60 athletes started the Men’s Pro division but only 54 finished). The fastest Mens Pro sled pull on the day was from Martin (a huge guy!) in 04:09, whereas in Dubai the week prior the fastest sled pull was 02:57. Of course, I think everyone appreciates that there can never be complete consistency between courses for numerous reasons. But when large amounts of time are being added because of course inconsistencies, and some athletes races are completely ruined because of it, AND when people are having to spend a lot of money entering and travelling to these races, I think we would all like to see better consistency than there currently is.
Women’s Pro
The Women’s Pro was won by Caroline Vreden in a time of 01:12:31, closely followed by Bonnie Lohmann in 01:12:56.
Third place was taken by Hannah Burgon in 01:18:24.
Men’s Open
The Men’s Open was won by Aaron Woodman in 00:59:24.
Second was Arkadiusz Grabowiec in a time of 01:03:24.
Third was Pasquale De Chirico in 01:05:03.
Women’s Open
The Women’s Open was won by Anne Stellaard in a time of 01:06:46.
Second was Paulina Romaniuk in 01:12:08.
The podium was completed by Kornelija Dudaite in 01:14:41.
Doubles
The Men’s Doubles was won by Patrick Ryan and Luke Acheson in 01:01:49.
The Women’s Doubles was won by Dominika Gnas and Natalia Wesolowska in 01:08:17.
The Mixed Doubles was won by Kirsty Keating and Stephen Hands in 00:59:30.
Here are some photos of the 2023 event:
