With the end of CrossFit Open just days away, murmurs surrounding the CrossFit Quarter Finals are beginning to spread! Whether you’re a budding competitor wondering if you’ll make it to the next stage of competition, or if you’ve been taking part simply to be a part of it (like thousands of us!) but are curious as to what happens next, this one is for you.
CrossFit Open: Completed it Mate
Once you’ve done the third workout and submitted your score, that’s it!! You’ve completed the CrossFit Open! If this is you, a huge, huge well done: you’re a special part of the 140,000+ person event that is the CrossFit Open! Simply knowing this fact coupled with your sense of accomplishment is plenty to be proud of. If you joined in on the Open at SCFIT – Home of Second City CrossFit, let us say thank you: thank you for being part of it, giving it your best, and contributing to this epic community event!
For many, the CrossFit Open is where their CrossFit Games journey begins, and finishes… to start again this time next year! By joining the Open each season you’ll be able to track your progress year on year, celebrating new wins and improvements as you get stronger and fitter. It’s the stand-out community event of the year on the CrossFit calendar – it’s no wonder many call it CrossFit Christmas!
But… the Open is also a stepping stone towards the CrossFit games, and the search for the fittest man, woman and team on earth.
CrossFit Quarter Finals: They’re Back
After a year ‘off’ from Quarter-Finals (with last year’s CrossFit Games season consisting of The Open, followed by in-person Semi-Finals) 2026 marks the return of this online competition stage. So how does it work? The top 25% of athletes (based on scores from the CrossFit Open) will be invited to take part in the CrossFit Quarter Finals: a five-day event consisting of a range of CrossFit workouts designed to test and challenge the fittest athletes. Qualifying athletes will take on the workouts in their CrossFit gyms, and will submit their scores online.
What will the CrossFit Quarter Finals workouts be?
Just like the Open… it’ll be a surprise! That being said, there are some common themes we typically see at the Quarter Finals competitions stage:
- Constantly Varied Functional Fitness
The foundation will be… you guessed it… CrossFit! The workouts will feature a variety of functional movements, just like a CrossFit class / Open workout. Expect to see barbells, dumbbells, gymnastics, perhaps a rowing machine, box, rope etc! - Heavier Weights
With the core audience of the CrossFit Open being the general CrossFit population, even the heaviest weights in the RX category tend to be relatively accessible to a typical ‘RX athlete’, and / or any heavier loads have to be ‘earned’ by climbing a ladder, or chosen by the athlete themselves as part of a max-lift attempt.
In Quarter Finals however, we often see heavier loads featured in the earlier parts of the workouts, giving an opportunity for the more seasoned lifters to display their strength. For those who ‘just make it’ to Quarters, these loads can sometimes be a tough hurdle to overcome, and the challenge of the workout might be a race to the bar and a lift attempt, rather than aiming to ‘get through the whole workout’. - Special Skills
Athletes progressing to Quarter Finals have likely already displayed their aptitude in the more challenging CrossFit skills (such as muscle ups, or handstand walking) so the Quarters present an opportunity for an even bigger challenge – sometimes in the form of specific variations of special skills. Pullovers, crossovers (with a skipping rope) and handstand pirouettes could all be on the cards! - Niche Equipment
With The CrossFit Open designed for the masses, it’s important that workouts are ‘doable’ in standard CrossFit gyms using typical equipment available to all members. In the CrossFit Quarter Finals however, it’s to uncommon to see a few specialist pieces of equipment appear, such as a 15-foot rope-climb or GHD Sit Up. Not only are these higher skilled movements (similar to those covered above!) but the equipment is impractical for use by the masses in the Open – so these special movements have typically been reserved for Quarter Finals workouts.
How will I know if I’ve qualified for CrossFit Quarter Finals?
If you’re tracking your progress on the CrossFit Games Leaderboard, you’ll likely already have a pretty good idea as to whether you’re likely to be within the top 25% of your chosen category. If you haven’t checked it out yet and have completed all of the workouts ‘RX’, be sure to have a look and see where you currently rank! Remember, the final deadline for submitting scores from 26.3 will be Monday evening, and there is always a little bit of ‘reshuffling’ once scores have been reviewed and approved, but you’ll likely have a pretty good idea already!
Then, sometime next week, qualifying athletes should receive an official invitation to sign up for the online Quarter Finals.
When are Quarter Finals?
Quarter Finals kick off on March 26th – so it’s a pretty quick turnaround after the CrossFit Open! Find out more about exactly how it works by heading to the Quarter Finals page on the CrossFit Games website.
How will Quarter Finals work at SCFIT?
Competitors: watch this space! For the long weekend of the Quarter Finals, we’ll be making provisions so that participating athletes will be able to attempt all of the QF finals at SCFIT in the necessary timeframe. We’ve got you! Exactly how this will work, we won’t know yet – we’ll confirm details once we know exactly how many members will be taking part.
Due to the special nature of the workouts, equipment and the required set up, we won’t be featuring the Quarter Finals workouts in our usual classes here at SCFIT in Stirchley, so if qualifying for Quarter Finals is not on your radar (or if you’re likely to qualify but have no interest in taking part) then fear not: you’ll be able to join classes as normal over the QF weekend and get your usual SCFIT-CrossFit fix as part of your normal workout routine!
For those who qualify and choose to accept their QF invitations, we’ll be reaching out to chat about the ‘hows and whens’ of the weekend. Stay tuned!
What happens after Quarter Finals?
You guessed it…. Semi-Finals! We’ll share details in due course, but in the meantime head to the Games Site for an overview.
But first….26.3!
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves – before the CrossFit Quarter Finals we have one more workout in the 2026 CrossFit Open! By the time you read this post, the final workout will have been revealed… and hopefully you have plans to attend the final Friday Night Lights at SCFIT this evening! If so: we can’t wait to see you there. Let’s go!
Curious about CrossFit? Book a free No Sweat Intro chat with a member of the SCFIT team to find out more! Whether you’re brand new to fitness or looking for a new home to do CrossFit in Birmingham, we’d love to hear from you.