Xenom Stages 10-Event Fitness Contest in Texas as CrossFit Workouts Become Spectator Sport
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 9
Xenom Stages 10-Event Fitness Contest in Texas as CrossFit Workouts Become Spectator Sport
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 9
Summary
Nearly two dozen amateur men competed under arena lights in Frisco, Texas, in a Xenom weekend built around 10 high-intensity events spanning weightlifting, running and gymnastics.
The format turns a workout class into a scored competition, testing strength with barbell lifts, speed with a three-kilometer run and agility with handstand push-ups and pull-ups.
Participants included software engineers, salesmen, retired police officers and fathers in their 40s, underscoring Xenom’s pitch that ordinary customers—not just elite athletes—can enter.
Xenom draws many of its workouts from CrossFit, founded in 2000 in California, and operates as an official partner as it tries to make exercise itself into a spectator sport.