ATHX vs Mud Masters : distance, stations, prix et difficulté comparés (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.

Mud Masters is an obstacle run organised by Mud Masters B.V. of Utrecht, held since 2012 at venues in the Netherlands and Germany. Current events include Haarlemmermeer and Biddinghuizen in the Netherlands and Airport Weeze in Germany, each running over a weekend. The organiser reports around 60,000 finishers per year.

The course is inspired by military training courses and built around teamwork. Distances run from 6 km (13+ obstacles, average finish time about 1 h 15 min) through 12 km (23+ obstacles, about 2 h 30 min) and 16 km (30+ obstacles, about 3 h 15 min) to a 42 km option at selected events. Obstacles include walls, monkey bars, rope climbs, tyre flips, mud crawls and ice-water baths, and routes change every season. Each weekend also has a Family Edition, and there is a finish festival after the race. The shorter distances suit first-timers and groups; the 16 and 42 km courses are for well-prepared runners.