This season, one of many modifications CrossFit has carried out is a brand new public video overview course of on the Semifinals stage.
As outlined in rule 2.10a of the 2025 CrossFit Games Rulebook, anybody who has accomplished the 2025 On-line Judges Course will have the ability to overview, choose, and assess every video.
- Extra particularly, reviewers have three choices: they’ll charge the video as “good video,” “wants overview,” or “unviewable” (indicating that the video can’t be considered or doesn’t match the right exercise).
This public overview course of occurred for the Age Group Semifinals from the top of competitors on Sunday, April 6, till Friday, April 11, at 5:00 p.m. PT. CrossFit now has till April 21 to finalize the leaderboard.
In keeping with the rulebook, the Particular person In-Affiliate Semifinals, which will likely be used to qualify 11 particular person women and men for the 2025 CrossFit Video games, will comply with the identical course of.
Why It Issues
In idea, the brand new public overview course of seems to be an efficient technique to improve transparency and equity within the qualification course of. Nonetheless, in observe, it has raised quite a few questions and issues.
Essentially the most urgent query is: How does CrossFit intend to make use of the general public overview votes?
The rulebook is way from clear on this concern.
- In keeping with the rulebook, after the general public overview interval ends, for movies that obtain “a big quantity” of “good video” votes, “the rating could also be accepted on the leaderboard as submitted.”
If a video has acquired “a big quantity” of “wants overview” votes from the general public, it is going to be assessed by CrossFit, and a penalty could also be utilized.
What does a big quantity imply? Ten votes? Twenty? Fifty?
Nonetheless, the scenario is only the start of the confusion, and it’s one thing five-time age-group CrossFit Video games champion Jason Grubb has brazenly addressed.
- In a latest Instagram publish, he highlighted seven “points” which have arisen from the general public overview course of at the moment unfolding within the age-group divisions.
To start with, voters aren’t really required to observe a video to vote on it (nor do they should maintain a CrossFit Degree 1 certification). All they want is $10 and half-hour of their time to go the choose’s course.
- In Grubb’s case, he has extra votes on a few of his exercise movies than he has video views, as he talked about in an interview on Talking Elite Fitness, indicating that individuals who haven’t even watched his exercises are evidently weighing in.
Second, one thing that’s clearly lacking is a feedback part so voters can present suggestions about what must be reviewed, reasonably than simply giving a thumbs up or a thumbs down, Grubb identified.
The State of Play
In keeping with Grubb, who can also be a member of the CrossFit Athlete Council, athletes within the Age Group Division have requested their mates to spice up their movies with “good overview” votes, which he believes “may discourage others from watching and critiquing these movies.”
- Moreover, he acknowledged, “There are studies of organized networks downvoting different opponents.”
Grubb notes that scores on the high of the leaderboard and alongside the qualifying cutline are reviewed greater than these within the center.
- “If penalties are utilized, they’ll seemingly hit the highest and backside scores more durable, whereas questionable reps within the center may slip by with out the identical scrutiny,” he stated.
One Huge Factor
With all of the modifications to the Semifinals qualification course of this season, it’s clear that some kinks nonetheless should be ironed out.
Most lately, this prompted CrossFit to concern a “one-time exception” for age-group athletes judged by somebody with expired credentials.
Remind me: In keeping with the 2025 rulebook, athletes within the Age Group and Particular person Semifinals should have two judges overseeing their exercises: a Ground Choose and a Head Choose, each of whom are required to carry a present Degree 1 credential or larger.
- CrossFit reported that “a small quantity” of judges who oversaw age-group athletes had expired credentials.
On April 11, CrossFit introduced a “one-time exception” as everybody continues to adapt to the brand new course of.
CrossFit’s inner overview crew will “conduct a full video overview of every of the affected exercise submissions and modify scores as wanted, as an alternative of disqualifying athletes judged by officers with expired credentials.
CrossFit additionally acknowledged that the duty will relaxation on particular person athletes competing within the upcoming In-Affiliate Semifinals to make sure their judges have present credentials, as they “is not going to be granted an exception if their choose is discovered to have expired credentials.”
The Huge Image
Implementing a public overview course of could have been motivated by good intentions, however the outcomes stay unsure for each the Age Group Semifinal and the upcoming Particular person Semifinal in Might.
At this level, it seems that there are nonetheless some points to resolve.
Grubb put it this fashion on a Speaking Elite Health podcast final week: “What we’re left with is the frustration that we don’t know what’s subsequent. We don’t know what movies will get reviewed. And it’s tense.”
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Featured Picture: @jasongrubb_fitness / Instagram