In the November 4 meeting of the CrossFit Athlete Council, aka the CAC, the Safety Advisory Board recommended the introduction of a medical screening requirement to compete at the 2026 CrossFit Games. The CAC supported this measure during the November 4th meeting.
The new requirement will apply to only individuals and teams competing at the 2026 CrossFit Games.
Those will be required to have their primary care or other medical professional fill out a form provided by CrossFit. Athletes will then be required to submit the completed form within a certain timeframe ahead of the 2026 CrossFit Games.
In speaking with multiple members of the CAC about the matter, it was confirmed that Age-Group and Adaptive athletes will not be required to submit proof of medical screening in 2026.
2025 Proposal
This is not the first time that medical screening requirements have been brought up. At the May 27, 2025, CAC meeting, Wendy Guthrie, the Safety Advisory Board’s Head of Safety, presented a recommendation for medical screening protocols.
Guthrie’s proposal was to implement a self-reported health history form in 2025 followed by a full physical evaluation in 2026.
During that meeting, members of the CAC expressed concerns about HIPAA compliance, data privacy and the short timeframe to implement a new policy.
At the next CAC meeting on June 6, the CAC officially responded to the request, “Following our recent discussions on advancing athlete safety protocols, we’ve decided not to implement medical clearances for the 2025 CrossFit Games. While we all agree on the value of these measures, key concerns around HIPAA compliance, data privacy, and the tight timeline for execution made it clear we wouldn’t be able to deliver a responsible, athlete-centered process this year. We’re committed to revisiting this for 2026 with the necessary rigor.”
2026 Implementation
Now as everyone begins to prepare for the upcoming 2026 season, the CAC has thrown its support behind implementing a full physical evaluation for the individuals and team athletes.
In speaking with one of the CAC members, one of the concerns about implementing this protocol beyond individuals and teams was the ability for CrossFit to provide oversight to that many athletes who compete in the Age-Group CrossFit Games. While expanding the program is not off-the-table, the CAC member expressed that it likely would not be any time soon.
Details of the Policy
At this time, many of the details of how this program will work and the requirements have not yet been disclosed. The CAC member I spoke with said that more details would be released in December when the 2026 CrossFit Games rulebook is published.
One of the big question marks is how CrossFit will manage situations where an athlete’s physician and CrossFit’s medical staff disagree on whether it is safe for an athlete to compete.
One example that comes to mind is when Brooklynn Lander competed on a team at the 2024 CrossFit Games while pregnant. She worked closely with her physician throughout her pregnancy leading all the way up to the CrossFit Games. Would CrossFit’s medical staff permit a pregnant athlete to compete?Â
A request for clarification and comment from CrossFit regarding the new policy was not immediately returned.
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