Eagle River teen tops CrossFit
- Rylan Kirby, a teen from Eagle River training at CrossFit Iron Refined, finished first worldwide in the male 16–17 CrossFit Open. (alaskasnewssource.com) - He topped more than 1,000 entrants in his age division during the Open’s virtual qualifying stage. (alaskasnewssource.com) - That result positions him on the pathway toward further CrossFit Games qualification inside the sport’s youth ladder. (alaskasnewssource.com)
An Eagle River teenager finished first in the world in his CrossFit Open division, putting an Alaska athlete atop the boys 16-17 leaderboard. (alaskasnewssource.com) Rylan Kirby, 17, trains at CrossFit Iron Refined in Eagle River and placed first out of more than 1,000 entrants in the male 16-17 age group in the 2026 CrossFit Open, Alaska’s News Source reported on April 21. (alaskasnewssource.com) The official 2026 Open leaderboard lists Kirby first worldwide with 12 points across three workouts: sixth in 26.1, fifth in 26.2, and first in 26.3. (games.crossfit.com) The CrossFit Open is the sport’s online qualifying stage, with athletes submitting scores during a three-week window from Feb. 26 to March 16 in the 2026 season. (crossfit.com) For teenage divisions, the Open is only the first step. CrossFit’s 2026 season rules say the top 25% in each age group move on to the Quarterfinals, scheduled for March 26-30. (crossfit.com) That structure means Kirby’s No. 1 Open finish does not by itself make him a CrossFit Games champion. It puts him at the front of the qualification ladder for the youth side of the 2026 season. (crossfit.com) Kirby’s rise has been fast. The Anchorage Daily News reported on April 16 that he started competing through CrossFit Iron Refined last year at 16 and still trains full time as a youth hockey player with Team Alaska. (adn.com) His gym coach is Shelby Fields, according to the Anchorage Daily News, and a video posted to YouTube shows Kirby completing workout 26.3 at CrossFit Iron Refined on March 12 with a score of 264 reps. (adn.com) (youtube.com) For now, the result stands as a rare marker for Alaska in a sport built on worldwide online qualifying: a 17-year-old from Eagle River entered the Open and finished the first round in first place. (games.crossfit.com) (alaskasnewssource.com)
