Travers eyeing Elite 15 spot after excelling again

AARON Travers has taken to life as a Hyrox athlete like the proverbial duck to water.

The former Ulster amateur boxing champion, who won the provincial crown in 2021, made the move to Hyrox back in March and he’s already qualified for two World Championships and he is aiming for a place in the Elite 15 – the top 15 competitors on the planet.

“I started in March, I did the open weight in Glasgow on 11 days notice – I didn’t really know anything about Hyrox,” he explained.

“I just knew I wanted to give it a go. I was up for competing, I like competing and my background, I’ve been doing a lot of strength training and running anyway, so I just took it on 11 days notice and ended up finishing fourth in my age group.

“I didn’t know what way to pace myself but I decided to give it a lash and I was happy enough with my performance – I was 11 seconds off the podium in that one – because that qualified me for the World Championships in Nice!”

That early success meant the now 25-year-old had to move in the Pro ranks after just one race, but again that didn’t phase the Carrickmore man who announced himself at World level in style.

“Once you qualify for the World Championships, you are automatically moved into the Pro division, which means heavier weights,” he added.

“So, that was in June and I ended up coming home as the first Irish man in the under-24 age group, 15th in the world in under-24.

“Then, two weeks ago, I had Madrid booked for Pro [event] and I did one hour and two minutes to come third in my age group and seventh overall.”

Travers’ steady improvement continued at the weekend past when he competed in Hyrox Dublin, finishing second overall and second in the 25-28 years age group in under an hour with a time of 59.03 minutes.

While that time was incredible, particularly as it was in only his fourth individual Hyrox event it proved slower than the overall winning Sean Noble, who earned his place in the Elite 15 with a finish time of 55.30 minutes and that’s Aaron’s next target.

“At the weekend, I knew I was up against tough opposition because Sean Noble was on the brink of being Elite 15, which is the top 15 in the world, who are in a division of their own,” he explained.

“So, his time at the weekend actually qualified him for the Elite 15, so that shows the quality I was up against.

“But I finished second overall and in my age group, behind Sean by about three and a half minutes, which is a considerable time but I’m closing in!

“I’m aiming to push into the Elite 15 in the next two years, it’s definitely within me. Those boys, to get sub hour, is something a lot of people don’t achieve, but I’m hoping in the next few years I’d like to make the Elite 15 like Sean did.

“At the minute he’s setting the standard but this is his last year in my age-group! Hopefully I’ll close the gap even more in the next few races, but at the moment he’s the standard-bearer that the rest of us are chasing.”

Aaron has already qualified for the next World Championships, which will be held in Chicago in June 2025, but not satisfied with competing as an individual, he’s hoping to seal his place in the doubles too alongside Darragh Corcoron, with whom he won the most recent Total Workout HQ Hyrox in Omagh in a time of 54.17 minutes.