Rocking HYROX Chicago: Hamza Najih
Published December 17, 2025
Hamza ranked 2nd overall in Chicago.
This November, Hamza Najih competed in HYROX Chicago, ranking 4th overall. Hamza is an international exchange student at UW studying Marketing & Communication and Business Administration, and is a student at Al Akhawayn University in his home of Morocco. In addition to traveling the world for his studies, Hamza is a world-class endurance and functional athlete.
HYROX is a popular fitness competition launched in Germany in 2017 and is one of the fastest growing in the world. HYROX blends endurance and strength by pairing running with functional workout stations. Athletes complete a 1 km run followed by one functional workout, repeated eight times.
Each race takes place indoors in large-scale exhibition halls, creating an immersive, high-energy atmosphere with competitors and spectators. The standardized race format is identical worldwide, allowing athletes to compete on global leaderboards and qualify for a cumulative World Championship at the end of each season.
Hamza competed at HYROX Chicago, at the Navy Pier, which was the same venue for the HYROX World Championship in May 2025. It took him 3 months to prepare, with much of that training come at UW’s facilities.
The work paid off. He completed the race in 01:00:50, ranking him 4th out of 1598 athletes overall, and 2nd in his age group of 16-24 years old.
Hamza competed in Boston, Atlanta, and Chicago in 2025.
Both the times and rankings were a personal best for Hamza. He previously competed in Boston and Atlanta, scoring 01:09:13 and 01:06:02 race times, respectively. The improvement has further motivated Hamza, who reflected on his experience:
Chicago was a quiet confirmation for me. A race where I understood a bit more about who I am as an athlete and what I’m moving toward. Finishing in 1:00:50 showed me that the work is starting to align with the direction I want to take.
What mattered most to me out there was carrying my country with me. Representing Morocco on a stage like this, and in every race that comes next, is something I don’t take lightly. It gives every training session and every start line a different kind of meaning.
A huge shoutout to the University of Wyoming for their support for this project.
This race wasn’t about perfection. It was about progression, identity, and learning to trust the path I’m building. I’m proud of what Chicago gave me, and I’m even more proud of what I get to represent moving forward.
Follow Hamza on Instagram to learn more about his HYROX competitions and pick up a few fitness tips from an expert.
