Hamilton County has hosted a wide variety of competitions, championships, combines, and contests. World Fitness Project, a startup fitness tour backed by notable exercise brands and CrossFit athletes, is coming to Westfield’s Grand Park May 9-11.
World Fitness Project launched in 2024 with a full pro and challenger series for this year. The May event at Grand Park is the first competition in a qualifying series for athletes to make the World Fitness Project finals in December in Copenhagen, Denmark.
The World Fitness Project workouts are both interesting and rigorous. Pro-level athletes will complete five rounds of a timed series, which includes a 600m run, six ring muscle-ups, and six snatches. Then it’s off to the sandbag clean, sit-ups, and 30m handstand walk. A series of pull-ups, front squats, biking, lunges, burpees, and rope climbs follows. The physical feats can last between 4 and 24 minutes.
There are two tour events, one in Westfield and another in Arizona, in August. The season also includes two challenger qualifier events where athletes can earn points and make it to Denmark. There’s also a World Fitness Trials qualifier event in October.
Jason Ansley is the US Event Director for World Fitness Project, transitioning from a competitor and planner of other fitness competitions to the startup. Ansley earned his stripes with an event called 1st Phorm Monster Games, and when World Fitness Project came online, he got the call to put together a global schedule.
“It was my job to find cities to host events, and Grand Park fit that bill. It’s easy to fly into, and we wanted a destination city with a good sports complex,” Ansley said. “Overall, the facilities are so big and blow you away. Grand Park was received really well when we announced it, so that was exciting.”
One challenge in the competitive exercise space is timing. Many events are put together quickly, which may restrict registration and training time for athletes. The flexibility and quick collaboration World Fitness Project found in Hamilton County allowed it to get off the ground and think ahead to 2026. A chance meeting with the HCSA team and a connection through Sports ETA led to a site visit in February, and a series tour launch in May.
“The teams at Grand Park and HCSA have held our hand the whole way,” Ansley said. “They’ve done a good job taking our vision and letting it flow through the facility.”
Athletes and fans interested in the World Fitness Project can find information at WorldFitnessProject.com.
