ATHX vs Deadly Dozen: distance, stations, price & difficulty compared (2026-27)

ATHX is a UK-born hybrid fitness competition, co-founded by coach Ollie Marchon, that now runs events across the UK, Europe and the United States. Each ATHX event is a continuous 2.5-hour session across six zones. Every competitor completes the same three workouts: a Strength zone (20 minutes), an Endurance zone (30 minutes) and a MetCon X zone (30 minutes). These are separated by a warm-up zone, a refuel zone and a recovery zone. The workouts and movement standards are published for each season.

Athletes enter as singles or pairs, in an ATHX or a harder ATHX PRO category, and pairs can be same-sex or mixed. Season results lead to the ATHX Finals, held in Lisbon in 2026. The fixed rest periods and clear divisions make ATHX accessible to first-timers, while the strength element suits athletes who lift as well as run and row.

Deadly Dozen is a hybrid fitness race that began with a track race in Macclesfield, England, in mid-2024, founded by Jason Curtis. In the original Track Race, athletes alternate twelve 400 m runs, called Journeys, with twelve functional exercise stations, called Labours, for 4.8 km of running in total.

Athletes can race solo, as pairs who share the Labours, or as a relay team taking turns. Alongside the Track Race, the brand runs Deadly Sprint, Ultra and Hybrid formats, a youth race, a swim edition and gym-based races, including strength and barbell formats, through affiliate gyms. UK track races are held at athletics venues such as Lee Valley, Sheffield, Middlesbrough, Bristol, Macclesfield, Edinburgh, Crawley, Liverpool and Portsmouth, and the organisers say the network now spans 44 countries. First-timers are welcome, and the movements are designed to be accessible while still demanding.