Women's Health September 2, 2026 0 Comments

Defying Age and Limits: How These 60-Somethings Are Crushing the HYROX World Championships Like Pros

Ever wondered what it takes to conquer a fitness competition that’s part marathon, part obstacle course—and then some? HYROX is not your average race; it’s eight grueling kilometers punctuated by eight brutal fitness stations like sled pushes and sandbag lunges, all under the intense glow of arena lights and the roar of pop anthems blasting through the speakers. Sure, it might look intimidating at first glance—packed with athletes who seem superhuman—but beneath that polished, adrenaline-fueled exterior lies a story about grit, resilience, and downright refusal to quit. Take Cara Canzani, for example—a 61-year-old personal assistant from New York who laced up to finish her first HYROX race not just under two hours, but smashing that goal and securing a win in her age group. Trust me, watching someone with a hip replacement crush such a tough challenge totally redefines what it means to be an athlete. So, if you’ve ever found yourself thinking, “Could I really do that?”—you’re about to get a masterclass in how passion and perseverance can rewrite the rules of fitness, no matter the age or starting point. LEARN MORE

5 min read

If you’re in the fitness world at all—even if only through FitTok—you may have heard of HYROX, the new-ish fitness competition that’s certainly not for the faint of heart.. Participants run a total of eight kilometers, broken up by eight functional fitness stations, including the SkiErg, sled push, and sandbag lunges. Step into any HYROX competition, and you’ll be met with moody lighting and blaring pop music in an arena-like space filled with extremely fit men and women, making the race feel even more intense than it already is.

But beneath the high-gloss image is another side of the competition—one that focuses less on aesthetics, but perseverance, resilience, and accomplishment.

Cara Canzani is a 61-year-old New York native where her day-to-day involves being the personal assistant, a position she has held for 39 years. When she’s not doing the daily responsibilities of her job, she can be found working out. But she’s not just training to be able to hike with her family or improve joint health—she’s training to compete.

Before her first HYROX race in June 2025, Canzani says the nerves were definitely setting in. She was competing in New York, and she shared an anxious phone call with her sister the night before:“I was training with these girls that are like 35 years old, and I said, ‘What did I get myself into?’”

Canzani’s main goal was to finish in under two hours. Instead, she crushed her goal, finishing in 1:39:28 and winning the women’s 60-64 age group.

She would go on to compete in HYROX Chicago 2025, where she would run a personal best at 1:35:45. Since then, she has completed three more races, with the most recent one being at the HYROX World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden.

Curtesy of Subject

Competing in five races in less than two years is impressive enough. But qualifying for the World Championships—an opportunity reserved for the best of the best—is an achievement all its own.

Still, Canzani says the feeling of crossing the finish line is all the motivation she needs.

“With my age and my hip replacement, I’m just happy I’m finishing,” she says.

She says competing has become such an amazing goal to work toward, and she encourages others to try HYROX, even if they’re on the fence.

“Just try it,” she says. “It’s the most exhilarating thing. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but the minute I finish, I’m like, ‘When’s my next one?’”

Canzani was joined in her age group by Julie Tippetts, a 61-year-old motel owner in Spokane, Washington.

Tippetts started as a runner prior to getting the HYROX bug. Her motivation to maintain a healthy lifestyle was reinforced when she witnessed her mother passing away from breast cancer in her early 50s.

“I was like, ‘Okay, I’ve got to make sure that I stay healthy, so I can avoid this,’” she says.

That motivation was tradgetically reinforced again when her two sisters also passed away from breast cancer. Another sister is living with advanced Alzheimer’s.

“I’m going to live, I’m going to fight this,” she continues to tell herself.

Tippetts loves playing with her grandkids, who remind her that being healthy and active enhances her life. Whether that’s jumping on the trampoline with them or chasing them around at sporting events, she wants to be in the middle of the action rather than on the sidelines.

“I want to be able to continue to adventure with and be there for all of my children and grandchildren for a lot of years to come,” she says. “I know that if I keep myself healthy and active, I will be able to accomplish that.”

This mentality shaped how Tippetts raised her own daughters, she says, with working out becoming a family affair. Her youngest daughter is Lauren Griffith, an Elite 15 HYROX athlete. The two have competed in HYROX doubles together, ranking seventh overall and first in their age group at the 2025 Vancouver competition.

Now, Tippetts competes in doubles with her husband, Steve. In Stockholm, she competed in the solo race on Friday, finishing 12th in her age group. Two days later, she competed in the mixed doubles race with Steve, where the couple placed 21st in their age group.

When Tippetts is competing, she says she has a mantra she and her daughter often repeat to themselves during the race. “I feel good, I feel strong, I feel fast,” she says. “We would keep it going in our minds. Once your body is done, your mind has to take over.”

Tippetts and her husband lean on one another for support when they compete together. In HYROX doubles, the number of exercises and reps remains the same, but partners can divide the work however they choose. Prior to their race in Stockholm, the couple competed in Las Vegas where Tippetts said she did the majority of the lunges while Steve focused on the sled push and pulls more.

She said the biggest difference between doubles and singles races is that the doubles gives you a second to catch your breath—even if it’s only for a second.

“With singles, I know that death is imminent,” Tippetts says, laughing. “You’re going to be dead at the end, and you just have to be prepared for pain, pain, and more pain. With the doubles, it’s amazing how a few seconds of a breath will just get you going a little more.”

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Another 60-64 age group super-duo is Fran Jensen and Darlene St. Hilaire, two friends from Maine who fell into the world of HYROX almost by accident.

Both of them have been active their whole lives, and said their friendship bond was really thanks to their hometown gym, DöRū Fitness.

St. Hilaire, a nurse, explains that their gym really encourages team work, with the motto “pack mentality, individual goals.”

The women competed in their first HYROX race on a relative whim. Jensen, a doctor, originally signed up to do HYROX Boston as a single competitor last fall. However, her birthday was around the corner, and she decided she wanted to spend it with St. Hilaire. So, the pair entered into the doubles race.

The duo would go on to place first in their age group and qualify for the HYROX World Championship in Stockholm.

Among the best of the best, they finished at 25th in their age group—not too bad for a pair who started HYROX mere months before, regardless of their age.

Curtesy of Subject

“I don’t think about my age,” St. Hilaire says. “People say, ‘My God, for your age.’ I don’t think about my number, and I think if you live that way, you can just do what you do.”

St. Hilaire acknowledges that they’re working hard, but they’re also investing in something that will serve them just as well as their physical health: their friendship. She says a lot of people battle nerves going into the race, but she is there to have a good time with her friend.

“The way we’re approaching this event is we’re just going to enjoy the experience of it, because here we are,” St. Hillaire says.

Granted, the activity they’re partaking in is not considered to be that “enjoyable” to all.

“Halfway through the race, I’m going to ask her, ‘Are we having fun?!” St. Hilaire says, laughing.

“And I’m going to say ‘No,’” Jensen says.

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Alyssa Cruz is the social media editor at Women’s Health, where she drives social strategy and helps shape the brand’s voice across platforms. Prior to WH, she worked at CBS News and palabra. Originally from Toledo, she is a proud alumna of Ohio University, where she received two bachelor’s degrees in journalism and Spanish. When she is not creating social content, you can find her trying different restaurants in New York City or planning her next trip.