Hyrox Doubles and Relay: Rules, Weights and Strategy

Hyrox Doubles and the Relay are the most common way into Hyrox: less work per person and more room to enjoy your first race. But they have their own rules that are worth knowing before you sign up, especially how the work is shared and which weights each division uses.

Doubles vs Relay vs Singles at a glance

Hyrox Doubles rules

• You run together. All 8 km are run side by side: if one partner gets ahead, it is a 1-minute penalty. With more than three penalties for not staying together, you are out of the rankings.
• You enter and leave every station together. Nobody starts working until you are both there.
• You take turns at every station. While one works, the other rests: how you split it (by meters, reps or turns) is up to you.
• Sleds: one partner works and the other walks right behind. On the sled pull, the resting partner cannot help gather the rope.
• Farmers carry and lunges: the kettlebells and the sandbag are handed over to the side or backwards, never forwards. Whoever carries the kettlebells carries both.
• SkiErg and rower: you do not pass the handle from hand to hand, and you do not adjust your partner's damper.
• Burpee broad jumps: the incoming partner places their hands where the other's feet landed.
• Wall balls: you switch by letting the ball touch the floor or by handing it over. A mid-air handoff is a no-rep.

Doubles weights

The loads are not split between partners. Women's Doubles uses Women's Open loads; Men's Doubles and Mixed Doubles use Men's Open loads. In Pro Doubles, women race with Women's Pro loads and men with Men's Pro loads. In Mixed Doubles the ball is 6 kg (13 lb) for both, but each partner throws to the target height for their sex: 2.70 m (9 ft) for women and 3.00 m (10 ft) for men. You can check every station here:

How to split the work in Doubles

You will be running every kilometer together, so the time is won in how you split the stations. The general rule: short, alternating efforts so the resting partner genuinely recovers, and more volume for whoever is stronger at each station.

• Agree on the split before the start, not at the station: nobody thinks clearly mid-race.
• The resting partner calls the count. Count reps or meters out loud so the switch is clean.
• The slower runner sets the running pace. If one of you has more in the tank, that partner should take on more of the station work.

Hyrox Relay rules

• Teams of 4: four women, four men or mixed (two and two). All four have to be at the start.
• Each athlete runs 2 km and does 2 stations. Whoever runs a kilometer does the station that follows it. The team decides who takes which legs.
• The handover is a hand tag in the relay zone. The next athlete may only enter it shortly before the change.
• If you do two legs in a row, you have to pass through the relay zone after each station so your chip is read. Otherwise there is an automatic penalty.
• On the final wall balls, the other three can come under the rig to cheer and you cross the finish line together.
• The Relay only uses Open loads. In the Mixed Relay, the rulebook lists women's and men's loads without saying who uses which: confirm it with the organizers.

How to assign stations in the Relay

Give the sleds (stations 2 and 3) to your strongest pusher, burpees and rowing (4 and 5) to your best engine, and lunges and wall balls (7 and 8) to whoever has the toughest legs. If someone does two stations in a row, they also run both kilometers in a row, so plan the workload carefully: the order of the stations never changes.

How to prepare for a partner Hyrox

1. Train together at least once a week for the last 4-6 weeks, using the same run-then-station sequence.
2. Rehearse your switches on the sleds, SkiErg and wall balls: a clean handover saves more than pushing a little harder.
3. Pick a running pace the slower partner can hold for all 8 km. You can work it out with the Hyrox pacing calculator.
4. Do a simulation of half the race at race pace 2-3 weeks out. You will find sample sessions in Hyrox workouts and simulations and a full schedule in the 12-week Hyrox training plan.

Not sure where your weights or stations fit? The full list, with loads for every division, is in Hyrox stations, weights and distances.

Frequently asked questions

Is Hyrox Doubles easier than Singles?

The stations are, because you share them and rest while your partner works. The running is not: it is the same 8 km and you run together. That is why Doubles times are usually faster than Singles with the same loads: see the ranges by level in Hyrox Doubles and Relay times.

Can I do Doubles with someone at a different level?

Yes, it is very common. Set the running pace for the slower partner and let the stronger one take on more of the sleds and wall balls.

What happens if my partner gets injured before the race?

It depends on the event: check your registration to see whether you can change partners and until when. At the World Championships you cannot: Doubles spots are non-transferable and the qualified pair has to race together.