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RULES & STANDARDS

Summarised from BFT's official PODIUM Series #1 Event Playbook. Your judge's call is final on the day.

Format

  • Teams of two. Categories: Mens · Womens · Mixed. Divisions: Rookie · Open · Pro.
  • Four 15-minute zones with a 5-minute changeover between each — about 1h15 on the competition floor.
  • Teams compete in waves; your studio confirms your wave time in the week of the event.
  • Zone 1 Strength · Zone 2 Conditioning · Zone 3 Strength Endurance · Zone 4 Finisher.

Divisions & weights

♀ Women's · ♂ Men's. Mixed teams: each partner lifts their own weights. Where a studio doesn't carry an exact weight, the next heavier is used.

Rookie
ZONE 1 · STRENGTH
Trap Bar Deadlift40 kg · ♂ 60 kg
Barbell Bench Press20 kg · ♂ 40 kg
ZONE 2 · CONDITIONING
Max distance on the Row Erg + Ski Erg — no added load.
ZONE 3 · STRENGTH ENDURANCE
Kettlebell complex8 kg · ♂ 12 kg
Dumbbell complex4–5 kg · ♂ 7.5–8 kg
Rookie may do push-ups from the knees.
ZONE 4 · FINISHER
Wall Balls4 kg · ♂ 6 kg
Bionic Bike scored on calories. Rookie does 5 rounds (10·15·20·15·10); a box/step is allowed for wall-ball depth.
Open
ZONE 1 · STRENGTH
Trap Bar Deadlift60 kg · ♂ 80 kg
Barbell Bench Press25 kg · ♂ 55 kg
ZONE 2 · CONDITIONING
Max distance on the Row Erg + Ski Erg — no added load.
ZONE 3 · STRENGTH ENDURANCE
Kettlebell complex10 kg · ♂ 18 kg
Dumbbell complex7.5–8 kg · ♂ 12.5 kg
ZONE 4 · FINISHER
Wall Balls4 kg · ♂ 6 kg
Bionic Bike scored on calories. Full pyramid (10·15·20·25·20·15·10).
Pro
ZONE 1 · STRENGTH
Trap Bar Deadlift80 kg · ♂ 100 kg
Barbell Bench Press35 kg · ♂ 75 kg
ZONE 2 · CONDITIONING
Max distance on the Row Erg + Ski Erg — no added load.
ZONE 3 · STRENGTH ENDURANCE
Kettlebell complex16 kg · ♂ 24 kg
Dumbbell complex12.5 kg · ♂ 17.5 kg
ZONE 4 · FINISHER
Wall Balls6 kg · ♂ 9 kg
Bionic Bike scored on calories. Full pyramid (10·15·20·25·20·15·10).

The four zones

01StrengthMAX REPS // combined reps

Part A Trap Bar Deadlift (6 min) → 3-min changeover → Part B Barbell Bench Press (6 min). As many reps as possible; team-mates switch at their discretion.

  • Deadlift: every rep locked out at the knee and hip; the bar touches the floor each rep with no bouncing; hold the bar through every phase.
  • Bench: keep 5 points of contact; no bouncing off the chest; the bar touches the chest under control. The spotter may help un-rack only and never takes load.
  • Mixed teams: swap the plates so each partner lifts their own weight — no one outside the team may change the load mid-set.
02ConditioningMAX DISTANCE // distance on the Row Erg

One partner on the Row Erg and one on the Ski Erg at all times. Score is the metres accumulated on the Row Erg.

  • Switch ergs every 500 m on the Ski Erg — you must reach 500 m before swapping and a judge verifies it.
  • Set your damper before the set starts; it can't be changed once you begin.
  • In the final minute, once the Ski Erg hits its 500 m target that partner can stop while the rower keeps accumulating metres to the buzzer.
03Strength EnduranceAMRAP // combined rounds

Part A Kettlebell complex (6 min) → 3-min changeover → Part B Dumbbell complex (6 min). One team-mate works at a time; 1 round = one partner completing the full complex.

  • Kettlebell: 2× Renegade Row · Swing · Clean · Squat · Strict Press. Row to the hip; elbows leave the torso on the swing; squat to parallel; strict press to full lockout (no push press).
  • Dumbbell: 3× Push-up · Devil's Press · Front Squat · Push Press. Chest to floor on push-ups; the DBs travel through the hips on the Devil's Press.
  • Mixed teams carry their own kettlebells/dumbbells; Men's and Women's teams share a set.
04FinisherAFAP // time remaining

A 15-minute capped pyramid of Bionic Bike calories and Wall Balls. Start at 10, climb by 5 to 25, then back down to 10 — partners alternate the two movements each round.

  • Wall balls: squat below parallel and strike the target; you may not catch a bounced ball and continue.
  • Judges count wall-ball reps then verify bike calories.
  • Score is the time remaining when both partners finish the pyramid.

Scoring

The leaderboard does the maths — judges just record reps, metres, rounds and time.

01Strength
Total reps × 10
104 reps → 1040 pts
02Conditioning
Distance (m) ÷ 100
2404 m → 24.04 pts
03Strength Endurance
Total rounds × 10
18 rounds → 180 pts
04Finisher
(min × 10) + (sec ÷ 10) remaining
02:17 → 21.70 pts
WORKED EXAMPLE TOTAL1,265.74 pts

Competition rules

  • No weightlifting belts, knee sleeves, wrist wraps, wrist straps or gloves.
  • Judges fill out every scoresheet — competitors never score themselves.
  • Follow every directive from your judge.
  • Any unapproved modification or reduced weight within a zone scores that zone zero (Rookie allowances excepted).
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