La Medici Fortress of Siena prepares to welcome an epic event in the world of CrossFit®: the Stronghold Battle. Scheduled for September 9-10, this breathtaking race will bring the most daring and determined athletes to face extreme challenges within a historical and evocative context.
The organizers, Margherita and Alessandro from the CrossFit® Siena box, true enthusiasts and innovators in the field of fitness, have chosen this splendid setting to create a unique and exciting environment in which athletes can test themselves and show the best of their skills.
In this exclusive interview we will tell you about the various news planned, but what excites us the most and we want to share right away, is that for this edition we will be the official media partner!
You will see us there, on the floor, telling all the highlights of this breathtaking competition in first person, interviewing the winning athletes of each wod!
And that's not all: read on to find out more details of the different events scheduled, some spoilers and some surprises that the Stronghold Battle has in store for the public!
Index
Technical info
Name of the event: Stronghold Battle
Social page: @strongholdbattle
Qualifying WOD? They are not here! Athletes have direct access to the LIVE!
What categories can enter?
- Rookie MM - MW - WW
- Intermediate MM – MW
- RX MM – MW
- Master +80 MM – MW
When will it be live? On 9-10 September 2023
Where will the live take place? Inside the Medici Fortress in Siena.
How to register? To register, just go to Judge rules by clicking here.
Deadline and Prices? The deadline for entries is August 20th and the price for the team is €165.
Stronghold Battle: the interview with the organizers
Hi guys, it's a pleasure for us to have a chat. Tell whoever reads us who you are, what is your background?
Hi everyone! So we are Alessandro and Margherita, owners of the CrossFit® Siena box.
Ale was born in Rome, but lived all his childhood and adolescence in Siena, before starting to travel around Italy. He is a firefighter, always passionate about sports and a lover of outdoor activities.
I'm Margherita, I lived and graduated in the province of Milan, before taking the "flight" and working in other countries: London, Miami, Fortaleza ... then I returned to Italy.
I love to travel, I have worked in various fields and created “Alike” (from the Greek it means “creature of the sea”), a brand of Brazilian swimwear adapted to European shapes that I distribute online!
We met in 2017 in Milan and after about a year we decided to move to Siena to open a Box, CrossFit® Siena.
And how did the idea of creating the Stronghold Battle come about?
Well, basically, this idea has always been there. The desire to bring something new to our city and to create something different in the CrossFit® panorama.
The pandemic and the arrival of our children have significantly changed the scale of our priorities, slowing down the process until last year. In May 2022, the Municipality of Siena, which we take this opportunity to thank, offered us the possibility of realizing the first edition in one of the most evocative places in the city.. well we didn't miss this opportunity!
How did you divide “the tasks”: who does what?
This was probably the easiest part. Margherita has worked for years in the organization of events and therefore she is the one who weaves the strings of the macro structure. Ale, on the other hand, takes care of the "tender" in the strict sense, therefore logistics, timeline and WOD.
Of course we are not alone! We have many friends who help and support us, not to mention the fundamental component given by the guys from the Box, who were already the real engine of the race last year and will be even more protagonists this year!
You have, in fact, talked about this very suggestive location, the Medici Fortress! tell us a little
This is undoubtedly the hallmark of StrongHold Battle. No other race has the opportunity to be hosted in a 1500s stronghold! The amphitheater inside the parade ground is the perfect setting for the competition field.
It's a charming and expansive place, just steps (really steps!) from the wonderful Old Town! Inside you will find everything you need: food and wine stands, vendors area and very interesting services!
Last year you did the first individual edition and this year in a team. Why this change?
Last year we had very little time to do everything, so we opted for a version that was as lean and simple as possible.
This year, however, we also had more time to look around: there are no team races in Tuscany. The more famous ones are exclusively individual so we thought we'd go against the tide and offer something that wasn't there.
In addition, we strongly believe in the vision of "inclusive" sport. In this way we really give everyone the opportunity to be able to compete, even to those who do not have those Skills that are considered basic such as Pull Ups.
Tell us about the race format. We have learned that there will not only be agonism and competition, but also culture, is it true?
Yes, we would say culture and adventure! Here too we wanted to realize our own vision. In our competitive experiences, we have often found ourselves spending the entire weekend on the competition field or in the immediate vicinity.
There were very few occasions where we even managed to enjoy the surroundings and the places where we were competing. In a city like Siena, not having time to walk around the center would be a real shame, especially for those who come from afar!
So we have devised a format that gives more "free time" to the athletes and through the newsletter we will inform the kids about short cultural tours to visit the beauties of Siena and adventurous initiatives dedicated to them!
The invitation is to try to stay at least one more day in Siena to compete and fully enjoy their stay!
We want to know some spoilers… What's new for this edition?
This year the main novelty lies in the team competition of two, to make the wods even more engaging and in the expansion of the categories which will be 4, for a total of 480 athletes! …there will also be an evening/night WOD…in short, don't miss it!
There will be partners linked to leisure and very interesting products from every point of view! By liaising with Alikè, we will launch the men's collection for the beach and for CrossFit®!
These are shorts / Bermuda shorts in very light technical fabric, suitable for the sea and for our sport, with super interesting details J Obviously available on the online shop!
Let's talk about WODs: how many will they be? Will we see any particular skill or are you more old school?
There are 4 WODs for everyone!
There will be three on Saturday and one on Sunday, then cut and final for the best in the category. From the point of view of the Skills I'm quite a traditionalist, there will be the WORM (the WOD is already out so it's not a secret) as "special" equipment, for the rest I like to see the guys test themselves on the various domains and I don't think it's necessary invent circus skills for this.
Shall we give any spoilers? Naaaaaaah! The WODs will be out well in advance so you'll all have time to rehearse and perfect! We want you to the best of your ability!
Let's touch a sore spot: jackpots… How do you organize yourself in this sense?
As for cash prizes, they are only available for RX categories. For the other categories there are prizes of various kinds, for all the podiums.
Finally… Who are the partners and sponsors of this edition?
or really happy and proud to have involved all of them! We hope many of you will come! As Main Partner, CrossFit®® Siena has relied on Ruster Fitness, one of the most important national players in the rental of sports equipment in the CrossFit® sector.
But there will also be other technical partners, excellent local food and beverage companies and what we promised you: Sport + Culture + Adventure!
In short, crazy partners, ideal for pampering you during the days of the race and for discovering Tuscany and broadening the boundaries of your travels…in every way!! We can't say more 😊
We are really happy and proud to have involved all of them! We hope many of you will come!
Watch the video interview with the organizers
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