Hyrox is a sport described as “CrossFit in some ways,” but with “significantly more running,” that launched in Germany in 2017, with participation in its competitions growing every year in the U.S.

The 2026 Elite 15 World Championships in the sport were scheduled to take place March 7 and 8 in Washington, D.C., and Butler Township native Rachel Legacy qualified for the singles race and the doubles race after competing in the sport since 2022.

There was just one hiccup — by the date of the competition, Legacy would be about seven months pregnant.

Legacy said the competitive landscape could look totally different by next season, because of the growth Hyrox participation has seen recently, so she did what she thought anyone else in her situation would do.

“The entirety of the season, I competed pregnant,” Legacy said. “The sport is growing, there is a lot of women coming into the sport. This is not an opportunity we wanted to bypass.

“That is a potentially once in a lifetime opportunity.”

Legacy competed in the singles and the doubles race in March, the singles race being the hardest race of her life. But Legacy told herself she was competing against herself at the race, knowing her other competition would probably not be hindered by pregnancy.

The race’s spectators seemed to be on Legacy’s side.

“That was the hardest and slowest race of my life; but that was to be expected,” Legacy said. “At the same time, it was also the most fun because the crowd was losing it. They were so encouraging. The entire time I raced people were screaming my name and being so good to me.”

Legacy’s doubles partner, Hayleigh Kanthack, who lives in Arizona, also said the atmosphere of the race was supportive.

“We just went with it and I thought it was a beautiful idea,” Kanthack said about competing in the Elite 15 despite Legacy’s pregnancy. “I was 20 at the time. I'm 21 now. It was cool to see someone race pregnant.”

Hyrox combines running and functional workout stations, where participants run 1 kilometer, followed by one functional workout station. This is repeated eight times.

Each race is hosted indoors in expansive exhibition halls, creating an immersive and electrifying race where spectators can support racers from the very beginning to the very end. The race format remains consistent across the globe, enabling global leader boards and a cumulative World Championships at the end of each season, according to Hyrox’s website.

The Hyrox website also says 98% of its athletes complete their Hyrox race and the sport is welcoming to all, because there is no finishing time restriction and no qualification required to enter.

Legacy said because the race is the same every time, athletes can prepare for it in a way that they might not be able to for a sport like CrossFit. However, Legacy’s background in CrossFit made her a good candidate to take on Hyrox, since both sports involve intense workout repetitions. Hyrox just adds running to the equation.

Legacy’s other athletic pursuits also informed her skills in Hyrox, she said.

“I think having a background in CrossFit gives you an advantage in Hyrox,” Legacy said. “I was a cross-country runner in high school, some of college I did CrossFit and power lifting. That's just how I trained for exercise.”

Legacy said the Hyrox competitions always take place in a space large enough to hold the workout equipment and the track space Hyrox involves. So she has traveled the nation to compete in its events, from Washington, D.C., to Houston and Phoenix.

Legacy trains for the sport at a gym in Zelienople, which has equipment for CrossFit and Hyrox.

Legacy said she was introduced to the sport by a friend in 2022 and was drawn to it because it was a new challenge she could get on the ground floor for.

“It was a happy accident,” Legacy said of her introduction to Hyrox.

Each Hyrox race sees competitors take on eight workouts: a ski erg, a sled push, a sled pull, burpee broad jumps, rowing, a farmers carry, sandbag lunges and wall balls, with a kilometer run in between each station.

Legacy said it was a little daunting knowing she would be pregnant during the 2025-2026 Hyrox season and she did hesitate a bit before deciding to continue training for competition.

She said her Christian faith is one element that pushed her to want to compete this season, with the support of her family, friends and Kanthack pushing her to the starting line.

The range of emotions she experienced during the race and its aftermath was vast, Legacy explained.

“One of my first thoughts was 'Oh my goodness, I'm going to race the entirely of this season pregnant,' and, ‘This is our first child. This is all uncharted territory,’” she said. “There were definitely moments of doubt and wondering why I am still doing all the training, because the training is a job and a lot of effort.

“At the end of the day, it was very much worth it.”

Kanthack said she helped convince her racing partner to compete because they had already signed up for the season.

“She said that we could cancel the races we had planned before she told me but I said no because we were already training for it,” Kanthack said. “So we went ahead.”

Legacy said she and Kanthack fared well in their doubles race, because one member of a duo could take on more of the workout stations than the other, leaving the nonpregnant competitor with most of the work. Legacy said she and Kanthack came in 11th place in the doubles competition, being only “seconds shy of ninth place” — a somewhat unexpected result.

Legacy gave birth to her first child, a daughter, in April. And the new mom has been slowly getting back into her fitness training since then.

It may be a while before Legacy gets back on the Hyrox circuit, but she said the memory from her last competition is one she will always remember — and tell her daughter about someday.

“It's incredibly important to show women that they can do things like compete pregnant,” Legacy said. “I knew a lot of people would be watching.”