CrossFit CEO Greg Glassman Retires After Tweet Is Condemned As ‘Racist’ & Reebok Cuts Ties

CrossFit CEO Greg Glassman apologized for a controversial tweet Sunday, as Reebok and affilliate gyms cut ties with his brand. By Tuesday, Glassman announced his early retirement.

Glassman tweeted a response to the Institute For Health Metrics and Evaluation, which had put out a statement addressing racism as a public health crisis.

“It’s FLOYD-19,” wrote Glassman. He went on to write that the institute failed at modeling the coronavirus, and criticized their model as a “solution to racism.”

His tweet caused public outrage, and led Reebok to put out a statement saying that they will end their partnership with Crossfit HQ when their deal is up at the end of the year. Reebok has been CrossFit’s exclusive apparel sponsor since 2010.

“Our partnership with CrossFit HQ comes to an end later this year. Recently, we have been in discussions regarding a new agreement, however, in light of recent events, we have made the decision to end our partnership with CrossFit HQ,” Reebok said in a statement to Footwear News. “We will fulfill our remaining contractual obligations in 2020. We owe this to the CrossFit Games competitors, fans and the community.”

Hundreds of affiliate gyms have announced that they will be re-branding following Glassman’s comments. For example, Rocket CrossFit in Seattle has said it will be renamed Rocket Community Fitness in a statement on their website.

“You are going to lose a lot of affiliates this year. Many will be lost to financial hardship and closure as a result of a global pandemic. Many will also be lost to simply not seeing value in paying HQ for “services” that are cloaked in ambiguity and a relationship that feels one-sided due to absence of communication. And many will be lost to CrossFit’s failure to take a stand in a time of moral crisis in the US,” Rocket Community Fitness wrote. “You are likely losing Rocket to that last thing.”

Many athletes from the CrossFit Games also condemned Glassman’s tweet, and said that they may not return to compete.

“While I’m considering what our next steps are we cannot and will not stand with these comments or beliefs,” said Rich Froning, a four-time CrossFit Games winner, in an Instagram post.

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“A lack of acknowledgement and empathy for those who are fighting for basic human rights and equality is simply inexcusable and it’s behaviour that we cannot stand for,” wrote Tia-Clair Toomey in an Instagram post. She’s a three-time CrossFit Games winner. “My future with Crossfit is unclear and depends on the direction of HQ,” she said at the end of the post.

Glassman apologized for his comment in a series of tweets, but maintained that it was “not racist.”

“I, CrossFit HQ, and the CrossFit community will not stand for racism. I made a mistake by the words I chose yesterday. My heart is deeply saddened by the pain it has caused. It was a mistake, not racist but a mistake,” he wrote.

By Tuesday, Glassman announced he would retire in statement on the company’s website. “I’m stepping down as CEO of CrossFit, Inc., and I have decided to retire,” he said. “On Saturday I created a rift in the CrossFit community and unintentionally hurt many of its members. Since I founded CrossFit 20 years ago, it has become the world’s largest network of gyms. All are aligned in offering an elegant solution to the vexing problem of chronic disease. Creating CrossFit and supporting its affiliates and legions of professional trainers has been a labor of love. Those who know me know that my sole issue is the chronic disease epidemic. I know that CrossFit is the solution to this epidemic and that CrossFit HQ and its staff serve as the stewards of CrossFit affiliates worldwide. I cannot let my behavior stand in the way of HQ’s or affiliates’ missions. They are too important to jeopardize.”