Sacramento · May 29 – 31, 2026

Northern California Classic 2026: the Semifinal and its Games spots

A three-day, all-outdoor Semifinal at Discovery Park in Sacramento, where an Elite field chased two Games spots per sex alongside 34 community divisions. Over 1,200 athletes took part, the event's biggest field.

Official website Leaderboard

// 2026 CrossFit Games SemifinalsAwarded 4 spots at the 2026 CrossFit Games: 2 men and 2 women.See the spots

4
2026 Games spots
2
individual spots per sex
3
days of competition
2
Games spots per sex

The essentials

Dates: May 29 – 31, 2026
City: Sacramento, California, United States
Venue: Discovery Park · 1600 Garden Highway, Sacramento, CA 95833, USA
Organiser: Northern California Classic, in association with AnywhereFit and Iron Mile Fitness
First edition: 2019
Type: Individual Semifinal
Games spots: 4

About the event

The Northern California Classic was founded in 2019, after Regionals disappeared, to give the West Coast its own stage; that first edition at Riverfront Park in West Sacramento had 366 athletes at the main event. The 2020 main event was cancelled by state mandate, 2021 was split over three weekends, and the event then moved to Lake Natoma (2022) and Granite Bay (2024). In 2025 it became an official CrossFit Semifinal and moved to Discovery Park in downtown Sacramento, sending two men and two women to the Games. 2026 was its second year as a Semifinal, with every event held outdoors and divisions from teens to 60+, Elite to Novice, plus adaptive and pairs.

Games spots

What this Semifinal awarded at the 2026 CrossFit Games, as CrossFit published it.

Individual
4
2 men, 2 women

Who qualified for the Games

CrossFit's official list, with each athlete's place at this event. A name links to the athlete's profile where Heat Clock has one.

Individual

Men

Tudor Magda #1
Dylan Hamming #2

Women

Alex Gazan #1
Rachel Noel #2

Podiums

Top of the final leaderboard, as the organiser published it.

Individual · Men

Individual · Women

Alex Gazan #1
Rachel Noel #2
Leah Storen#3
Emily Rolfe #4
Lily Finger#5
Karisa Stapp#6
Samantha Pugh #7
Hattie Kanyo #8
Sydney Smith #9
Grace Lochner#10

Masters 35-39 Men

Mike Thomas#1
Steven Fisher#2
Ikaika Pascua#3

Masters 35-39 Women

Haj Bell#1
Emilie Schneider#2
Chelsea Atkinson#3

Masters 40-44 Men

Zachary Seale#1
Derek Diaz#2
Nathan Doud#3

Masters 40-44 Women

Adriane Winges#1
Jean Spear#2
Isabel Taylor#3

Masters 45-49 Men

Jonathan Blix#1
William Egan#2
Rudy Mendez Jr#3

Masters 45-49 Women

Rebecca Voigt-Miller#1
Janice Kuehn#2
Stefani Smith#3

Masters 50-54 Men

Ignacio Franco#1
Eric Wirfs#2
Mike Ross#3

Masters 50-54 Women

Keeley Ehlers#1
Cassandra Stamm#2
Pamela Herschler#3

Masters 55-59 Men

Todd Gabriel#1
Sean Marsh#2
Ryann Roberts#3

Masters 55-59 Women

Carrie Sandoval#1
Katrina Lundstedt#2
Daisy Flores#3

Masters 60+ Men

Paul Randall#1
Mark A Anderson#2
Mark Diamond#3

Masters 60+ Women

Lucy Bishop#1
Gwen Holtan#2
Catherine Raymer#3

Workouts

Event 1
Quad Trio
Format4 rounds for timeTime cap20 minScoringFor time
1. ·30/20-cal row
2. 50double-unders
3. 400 mrun
4. 50double-unders
Friday 29 May. Tiebreak: time at the end of the first 50 double-unders of each round.
Event 2
NorKalsu II
FormatFor timeTime cap12 min
1. 7ring muscle-ups
2. 40thrusters
3. 7ring muscle-ups
4. 30thrusters
5. 7ring muscle-ups
6. 20thrusters
7. 7ring muscle-ups
8. 10thrusters
Standards
Thruster 135/95 lb.
Friday 29 May. Tiebreak: time at the end of the 40 thrusters.
Event 3
The Mountain
FormatFor timeTime cap40 min
1. 20/18 kmBikeErg
Standards
Damper set to 10 from the 20-minute mark to the end.
Saturday 30 May. Elite only. Tiebreak at 2 km.
Event 4
Sand Trap
FormatFor timeTime cap7 min
1. 100 ftbear-hug sandbag carry
2. 3 ×1.5 rope climbs
3. 100 ftbear-hug sandbag carry
4. 2 ×1.5 rope climbs
5. 100 ftbear-hug sandbag carry
6. 1 ×1.5 rope climb
7. 100 ftbear-hug sandbag carry
Standards
Sandbag 200/150 lb. A 1.5 rope climb goes to the top mark, back down below a marked line and up to the top mark again.
Saturday 30 May.
Event 5
Bar Exam
Format4-3-2-1 for timeTime cap7 minScoringFor time
1. 4clean and jerks at 245/155 lb
2. 3clean and jerks at 295/185 lb
3. 2clean and jerks at 325/205 lb
4. 1clean and jerk at 345/220 lb
Standards
Any clean style from the floor; hang cleans not allowed.
Saturday 30 May.
Event 6
Lopsided
FormatFor timeTime cap7 min
1. 20lateral burpees over the dumbbell
2. 100 ftsingle-arm overhead dumbbell walking lunge, right arm
3. 100 ftsingle-arm overhead dumbbell walking lunge, left arm
4. 30alternating dumbbell hang squat snatches
Standards
Dumbbell 70/50 lb.
Sunday 31 May.
Event 7
Toe Tag
FormatFor timeTime cap10 min
1. 10deadlifts
2. 30 ftbackward handstand walk
3. 20toes-to-bar
4. 30 ftforward handstand walk, unbroken
5. 20deadlifts
6. 30 ftbackward handstand walk
7. 10bar muscle-ups
8. 30 ftforward handstand walk, unbroken
9. 10deadlifts
10. 30 ftbackward handstand walk
11. 20toes-to-bar
12. 30 ftforward handstand walk, unbroken
Standards
Deadlift 365/245 lb. The backward walk may be done as 2 × 15 ft unbroken.
Sunday 31 May.

How athletes got in

Elite Individual (50 per sex): 35 spots earned through the NCC Online Qualifier (January 9–25, 2026) and 15 at-large spots for winners of select competitions; NCC later opened remaining at-large spots to top-200 Quarterfinals finishers who contacted it on Instagram. Past NCC division champions also hold an at-large invite. To take a Games spot, athletes had to finish in the top 25% of the 2026 Open and the top 2,000 of the 2026 Quarterfinals. Community divisions qualified through the same online qualifier.

Divisions

Elite MaleGames spots50 on the final leaderboard; top 2 to the Games
Elite FemaleGames spots37 on the final leaderboard; top 2 to the Games
RX, Intermediate, Scaled and Novice (men and women)Community divisions
Masters 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60+ (men and women)Not a Games route at NCC
Teens 14-15 and 16-17 (boys and girls)Community divisions
Inclusive Adaptive (men and women)Community divisions
Pairs: Elite, RX, Intermediate, Scaled (male and female)Pairs, not teams of three, in 2026

Prize money

$165,000

Elite Individual (each sex): 1st $20,000, 2nd $10,000, 3rd $6,000, 4th $4,000, 5th $2,000, plus $1,000 per event win ($84,000 to Elite Individuals in all). Elite Pairs: $10,000 / $5,000 / $2,500. Masters 35-49: $2,500 / $1,000 / $500; Masters 50+: $1,500 / $750 / $500.

As a Semifinal

2026
in-person Semifinal (Elite Individual, 2 men and 2 women to the Games)
2025
in-person Semifinal (Elite Individual, 2 men and 2 women to the Games), first year at Discovery Park

The 2027 edition

Dates: May 21 – 23, 2027
Venue: Discovery Park, Sacramento, California
Semifinal in 2027: To be announced

Online Qualifier January 8–24, 2027 on Competition Corner (early bird October 1–31, regular registration from November 1, 2026); invitations in February 2027; spectator tickets on sale in March 2027.

Road to the Games

01
Open and Quarterfinals
The top individuals and Masters from Quarterfinals, and every team from the Open, could go to an in-person or the online Semifinal.
02
Twelve in-person Semifinals
Plus the online ones: Age-Group Online Semifinal (May 7 – 11, 2026), Adaptive Online Semifinals (May 14 – 17, 2026), Team Online Semifinals (Jun 4 – 8, 2026), Individual Online Semifinals (Jun 11 – 15, 2026).
03
2026 CrossFit Games
Jul 22 – 26, 2026 · SAP Center, San Jose, California.

CrossFit Games guide

Frequently asked questions

Who qualified for the Games at the 2026 NorCal Classic?

Tudor Magda and Dylan Hamming among the men, Alex Gazan and Rachel Noel among the women.

Is everything really outdoors?

Yes. Every event takes place outdoors across Discovery Park, a county park on the Sacramento River.

Can masters qualify for the Games at NCC?

No. NCC runs masters divisions with prize money, but its only Games spots are in the Elite Individual divisions.

When is the 2027 edition?

May 21–23, 2027, again at Discovery Park, with the Online Qualifier from January 8 to 24, 2027.

The other Semifinals

The twelve in-person Semifinals of 2026, in date order.

All competitions

Sources

Read on 29 October 2026: spots and qualifiers from CrossFit, everything else from the organiser.