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    HYROX Youngstars Brings Fitness Racing to Kids 8 to 15, and to the US

    Cameron KorabBy No Comments12 Mins Read

    Key Takeaways

    • About 900 children registered for the first US HYROX Youngstars race in Salt Lake City on September 19-20
    • The youth series relaunched in Amsterdam in January 2026 with more than 1,500 kids and grew 20% by London in March, with 22% of racers having a parent in the adult event.
    • Under-12 divisions run roughly 600 to 825 meters in total, versus 8 kilometers for adults, with sled, carry and ball loads scaled by age and, from 12 up, by gender.

    HYROX Youngstars, the youth division of the HYROX fitness race for children aged 8 to 15, made its United States debut at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on September 19-20, 2026, with about 900 kids registered, according to ABC4. The youth race ran alongside InBody HYROX Salt Lake City, where organizers told local outlets about 16,000 athletes competed over three days; the results aggregator HYRESULT lists 12,829 adult athletes for the event. HYROX has confirmed Youngstars stops in Anaheim in December and Houston and Atlanta in April 2027, and in July the company said the youth format would keep expanding in North America through the 2026/27 season.

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    How HYROX Youngstars Scales the Adult Race for Kids

    Youngstars keeps the eight-station sequence of the adult race but rebuilds the loads and the running around four age brackets: 8-9, 10-11, 12-13 and 14-15. Per the 25/26 Youngstars rulebook, each running lap is 200 to 275 meters. The two youngest brackets run three laps in total, at the start, mid-race and before the final station. The 12-13 group runs two-lap blocks at the start and after lunges. Only 14-15s run a lap between every station, the way adults do. That puts total running for an 8-year-old somewhere between 600 and 825 meters, against 8 kilometers for an adult.

    Station loads follow the same logic. An 8-9 racer pushes a 35kg sled for 15 meters, carries two 4kg kettlebells for 50 meters, does bodyweight lunges and completes 50 squats holding a 1kg ball with no throw. A 14-15 boy pushes 102kg for 30 meters, carries two 16kg bells for 100 meters, lunges with a 10kg sandbag and throws a 4kg ball to a 2.7-meter target. Burpee broad jumps become “frogger jumps” for 8-9s. Gender-specific standards begin at 12, which HYROX ties to stage of maturation.

    Results are timed and ranked by division, with official rankings based on biological sex at birth and a non-ranked option for children registering under their gender identity, according to the rulebook. Any injury-related modification moves a child to “Out of Competition” status with a finish time but no ranking. The rulebook also applies a WADA-aligned anti-doping code to the event.

    A Race Built With a Six-Month Gym Trial and a Parents’ Code

    HYROX first staged Youngstars at London Olympia in May 2024 and Singapore later that year, then relaunched it in a full race format at Amsterdam in January 2026, according to Rox Lyfe and Athletech News. Global Youngstars manager Jessica Petty told Health Club Management she spent six months testing the concept with young athletes in a gym before the relaunch, refining the rulebook, branding and safeguarding framework. “It’s designed for every kid, not just the future sporting stars,” Petty said.

    Amsterdam drew more than 1,500 young athletes, per SGI Europe. London Olympia in March 2026 grew participation 20% to more than 1,800, with 22% of racers having a parent competing in the adult event and 10% returning from Amsterdam, HYROX said via endurance.biz. The company confirmed Youngstars as a permanent global series in May.

    Race-day rules put distance between parents and the floor. Children are handed over at the start zone for a mandatory 25-minute staff-led warm-up and released only to the guardian verified at check-in with a QR code and ID. Parents follow the run course from behind fencing. HYROX recommends parents not race on the same day as their child. Its Parents’ Code of Conduct closes with the line: “Remember, this event is for your child’s enjoyment, not parental pressure or ego.”

    Where the Money Sits: Gyms, Guardians and a Program Still Marked “Coming”

    Each Youngstars entry includes one legal guardian ticket, according to HYROX event pages, and a Youngstars spectator ticket also admits holders to the co-located adult race. HYROX does not publish the child entry price on its public pages; prices appear only inside the checkout flow. No Youngstars-specific title or presenting sponsor has been announced. US adult events carry title partners such as InBody in Salt Lake City and Factor in Atlanta, but the youth races are branded simply as HYROX Youngstars.

    The commercial layer HYROX is building sits in gyms. Starting in 2026, Youngstars is to become part of the HYROX Coaching Certification so that affiliate gyms “around the world” can train young athletes, per the company. A HYROX Training Club affiliation costs $1,500 per year or $130 per month in the US, with the Level 1 coaching credential listed at $499, according to Two-Brain Business. HYROX’s FAQ also promises a dedicated Youngstars Training Facility affiliate program, and as of September 18 that entry still reads “will launch in Q1/2 2026.”

    Partners have moved ahead of the program. Virgin Active UK calls itself the official training partner of HYROX Youngstars and ran five-week prep courses for ages 10-15 at three clubs before London Olympia. In Wales, Conwy County Borough Council leisure services now sells “HYROX Youngstars” blocks for ages 8-11 and 12-15; the older class was “formerly known as Junior Lifting Club,” per the council’s site. Les Mills, named HYROX’s official group training partner in 2026, describes its programming as spanning “all the way from HYROX Youngstars, to Elite professional racing.”

    Who Else Is Racing for the Same Kids

    Youngstars enters a segment with established players. Spartan’s DEKA fitness race runs a Youth Division for ages 10-13 with modified zones and, per its rulebook, “no gender scaling,” plus a UK schools product for ages 14-18 called DEKA Youth powered by EXCLSR. Spartan Kids covers ages 4-14 at more than 40 US destinations, and Tough Mudder’s Kids by Spartan is explicitly non-competitive. CrossFit’s Teenage CrossFit Games, held July 24-26 in San Jose, fields 14-15 and 16-17 divisions of 20 athletes each after online qualification, according to FloElite.

    The macro backdrop HYROX itself cites is teen dropout. Athletech News, in its April report on the US debut, pointed to the Aspen Institute’s State of Play 2025 finding that regular sports participation among 13- to 17-year-olds fell 3% in 2024.

    Growth Ahead

    Infront Sports & Media, which sold its majority stake on September 8, said HYROX drew more than 1.4 million participants and 1.5 million spectators across more than 100 events in the 2025/26 season. Co-founders Christian Toetzke and Moritz Fürste now hold 51% through a consortium led by L Catterton with WndrCo, according to Inc. and Hybrid Fitness Media; Bloomberg reported a valuation of about €600 million, a figure no party has confirmed. HYROX projects more than 2 million athletes across 107 race weekends in 2026/27, per Athletech News.

    Anaheim on December 5-6 is the next US test, followed by Houston on April 3-4 and Atlanta on April 24-25, 2027.

    YSBR provides this content on an “as is” basis without any warranties, express or implied. We do not assume responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, legality, reliability, or use of the information, including any images, videos, or licenses associated with this article. For any concerns, including copyright issues or complaints, please contact YSBR directly.

    About Youth Sports Business Report

    Youth Sports Business Report (YSBR) is the largest and most trusted media platform covering the business of youth sports worldwide. YSBR delivers youth sports news, market intelligence, and original analysis daily across facilities, sponsorships, private equity, NIL, sports technology, and league operations. With more than 50,000 followers, YSBR is the leading source of youth sports industry news for the investors, owners, operators, and brands shaping the future of youth sports.

    How big is the youth sports market?

    American families spend approximately $54 billion annually on kids’ sports and recreation, according to the YSBR and Kinetica Group Youth Sports TAM & Parent Spending Report, with organized sports alone representing a $40 billion-plus market. The average family spent $1,016 on a child’s primary sport in 2024, up 46 percent since 2019, per the Aspen Institute’s Project Play, and market research projects the global youth sports market will reach approximately $114 billion by 2032 (Business Research Insights).

    How many kids play youth sports in the United States?

    Approximately 27.3 million children ages 6 to 17, or about 54.6 percent, played organized sports in 2022-2023, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health as reported by the Aspen Institute’s Project Play. High school sports participation reached a record 8.26 million athletes in 2024-25, per the NFHS.

    Who founded Youth Sports Business Report?

    Youth Sports Business Report was founded by Cameron Korab, a sports marketing veteran with more than a decade in the industry and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Korab also co-founded Vertical Sports, a sports marketing advisory serving brands across youth, college, and pro sports.

    What does YSBR cover?

    YSBR delivers original reporting and market intelligence on youth sports facilities, youth sports technology, sponsorship and brand partnerships, private equity and venture capital deals, NIL policy, coaching development, equipment and apparel, tournaments and events, and community sports initiatives. Readers include industry executives, investors, facility owners and operators, league administrators, and youth sports parents.

    Youth Sports Business Report resources

    • Newsletter: Subscribe to Youth Sports HQ, the most-read newsletter on the business of youth sports, delivering curated youth sports industry news and analysis to thousands of industry leaders every week.
    • Research: Read the Youth Sports TAM & Parent Spending Report, an exclusive YSBR and Kinetica Group analysis of market size, parent spending, and marketplace opportunities.
    • Jobs: Browse the YSBR Youth Sports Job Board, the most comprehensive destination for careers in youth sports, with hundreds of active listings across facility management, league operations, coaching, sports technology, and marketing.
    • Services: Find vetted partners and solutions for your organization in the YSBR Services Hub, connecting youth sports operators, brands, and investors with verified providers across the industry.
    • About: Learn more about Youth Sports Business Report and our editorial standards.

    Follow Youth Sports Business Report (YSBR): LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram | X | Substack

    Check out Jr. Sports Marketing on YouTube or Spotify

    Hosted by Cameron Korab, founder of Youth Sports Business Report, Jr. Sports Marketing features candid 1-on-1 conversations with the brands, athletes, leagues, and innovators building the future of youth sports. Each episode breaks down how the smartest brands are activating, building equity, and winning with youth sports families. If you’re an operator, founder, investor, or marketer trying to understand where this space is headed, this is your show.

    Youth Sports Marketing Questions, Answered

    Where can brands sponsor youth sports? Brands can sponsor youth sports through local leagues and clubs, tournaments and events, facilities and complexes, governing bodies, and national platform programs. Sponsoring a child’s own program is the most powerful entry point: 81 percent of parents say it captures their attention, outperforming TV, social media, and pro sports sponsorship, per a 2026 Priority Partnerships study conducted by YouGov Sport.

    How much does youth sports sponsorship cost? Youth sports sponsorship costs range from a few thousand dollars for a local league or team sponsorship to six and seven figures for regional facility naming rights and national platform programs. The environment is welcoming at every level: 84 percent of parents hold net positive sentiment toward brands sponsoring youth sports, with negative sentiment under 5 percent, per YouGov Sport research. Most brands start with a pilot activation, measure engagement, then scale.

    What is the ROI of youth sports marketing? The data is striking: 80 percent of parents say they would choose the brand that sponsors their child’s youth sports program when comparing two similar products, per a 2026 Priority Partnerships study by YouGov Sport. A 2026 EMARKETER and DICK’S Media survey found 84 percent of sports parents say that role influences their purchase decisions, and 60 percent spend more on game and practice days, driving loyalty across categories from dining to travel to automotive.

    Ready to build a youth sports strategy? Vertical Sports is an Advisory+ delivering integrated expertise across all levels of sport. Youth, College, Pro. Every Fan, Every Level. Brands and youth sports organizations can reach the team at info@verticalsports.us.

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    YSBR provides this content on an “as is” basis without any warranties, express or implied. We do not assume responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, legality, reliability, or use of the information, including any images, videos, or licenses associated with this article. For any concerns, including copyright issues or complaints, please contact YSBR directly.

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