Chrish Newell finds strength in new sport

Chrishtianna (Chrish) Newell, a 2012 Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé graduate, always had a particular strong point in sports since her Crimson Bears soccer days, which is now perfected into the competitive world of obstacle endurance contests of Spartan Deka and HYROX.

“Functional strength and mental toughness,” Newell said of her new love for HYROX endurance and strength competitions. “I’m not the fastest runner, but I can suffer with the best of them, and that’s a huge asset in this sport. Plus, I’m used to training through setbacks, so I know how to keep showing up.”

Newell, and partner Jess Contreras, will be showing up at the HYROX World Championships in Chicago, Illinois, June 12-15 at Navy Pier. The duo are competing in the Pro Doubles Women’s 30-39 age group after they finished first out of 850 teams to qualify for the World Championships in Atlanta last month. Only the top team moved on.

“We race on the 15th,” Newell said. “My competition partner I met when I first moved to Portland in 2019 and became good friends with. We’ve been competing against each other for a while. She’s a strong runner and I have some more strength so we balance each other out well.”

Newell, currently on the Dean’s List at Oregon State University — Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Candidate, Class of 2027, International Veterinary Student Association Junior Rep — is also balancing her second year of veterinary school around her competitions and is in the middle of finals while still training for the Worlds. She had a final scheduled for Friday the 13th, the day she is flying into Chicago but her professor is allowing her to take the final early so she can make it to the race.

“We race on the 15th and I’ll also be judging the event the entire weekend as well,” Newell said. “I luckily got one of my finals moved to take earlier so I could fly there, and then I have an online final Friday that I’ll have to take in between judging and prepping for my race.”

To get to this point Newell played four years of soccer at Oregon Institute Of Technology and five years of study, finishing undergrad work in 2017. She then started veterinary school at Oregon State University in 2023 and will graduate in 2027.

“After graduating OIT I spent a few years coaching college and high school girls’ soccer while diving into Olympic weightlifting,” Newell said. “When I moved to Portland, I missed running, so I got into Obstacle Course Racing (OCR) and ninja training, think American Ninja Warrior, and I was instantly hooked, until Covid shut that down for a bit.”

At the same time Newell was also working full-time as a veterinary assistant, which led to vet school in 2023.

“Honestly, veterinary medicine started as my backup plan to becoming a professional athlete,” Newell said. “I’ve always had a passion for animals and medicine, so becoming a veterinarian felt like the perfect combination of both. I’m currently in vet school and while it’s a huge commitment, I feel called to serve both animals and their people in meaningful ways. What’s cool is that what once felt like an “either-or” dream — athletics or veterinary medicine — has turned into a “why not both” journey. I’m now chasing both passions at once.”

During this pursuit she has dabbled in strongman, sprint triathlons, ultra trail running and grip sport for fun.

“I found Hyrox after realizing I loved both running and lifting and started searching for hybrid fitness events,” Newell said. “I came across it one day and the moment I saw it included heavy sled work and weighted lunges between 1K runs, I was in. I signed up for my first race while recovering from a knee injury, and even though it nearly broke me, I was determined to try it again and do better…It blends endurance and strength in a way that’s raw and intense. You don’t have to specialize, you have to be a well-rounded, gritty athlete. I also love that it’s standardized worldwide, so you can compare your time with anyone, anywhere. The community behind it is pretty amazing as well. Racing inside a packed convention center, you’ll have complete strangers cheering you on.”

In 2023 Newell played a season of professional women’s tackle football for the Oregon Ravens, but tore her ACL and meniscus during a game, which sidelined her from contact sports. Between both knees, she has torn both ACLs, multiple menisci, and had several surgeries but never stopped chasing her athletic goals.

A HYROX competition starts with a one-kilometer run followed by one of eight workout stations and then repeated eight times. A typical race would follow this pattern: 1km run, Ski Erg (1000m), 1km run, Sled Push (50m), 1km run, Sled Pull (50m), 1km run, Burpee Broad Jumps (80m), 1km run, Rowing (1000m), 1km run, Farmers Carry (200m), 1km run, Sandbag Lunges (100m), 1km run, Wall Balls (100).

“I train eight to 14 hours a week while juggling 18 to 21 credits in vet school and a 60-mile commute,” Newell said. “I’ll often squeeze in a run between classes and lift in the evening. During long cardio sessions, I’ll even listen to lectures, it’s a grind, but I love it.”

Newell said diet plays a huge role in this balance. “I focus on whole foods, eat lots of protein, and make sure I’m fueling enough for my training volume,” she said. “One of my favorite HYROX athletes (Lauren Weeks) said this once and it’s stuck with me, ‘You don’t need to work out to earn your food, you need to eat so you can earn your workout.’ If I don’t eat right, then I won’t have the energy needed to get my schoolwork done on top of training hard.”

Newell remembers her first competition well. “It was brutal,” she said. “I had a torn meniscus going in and hit a wall during the sandbag lunges. I honestly didn’t think I could finish. But I did and ended up on the podium. That moment taught me I was capable of more than I thought.”

Newell said she never knew strength sports could be exciting or that she would have the desire for them.

“I was always in team sports like soccer,” she said. “But I’ve always been drawn to challenges that push you physically and mentally. I didn’t start any kind of strength training until I got into college and Olympic weightlifting is where I fell in love with getting stronger. Then discovering this world of hybrid fitness is where I felt like I thrived.”

• Contact Klas Stolpe at klas.stolpe@juneauempire.com.