Hyrox backs athlete who soiled herself, then admits 'mistake' after backlash

After facing widespread criticism for allowing an Australian athlete to complete a race despite soiling herself midway through the event, Hyrox has apologised and acknowledged that it “did not handle the situation like we should have”, while announcing immediate changes to its rules and event procedures.

In a statement posted on Instagram, Moritz Furste, co-founder of the Hamburg-based international atheltics brand, said, "I apologise to all that were directly or indirectly affected, as well as to everyone who felt like we did not handle the situation like we should have."

“Hyrox made a mistake by not reacting immediately during the race,” he added, saying it was his responsibility to foresee potential incidents but that he had failed to do so.

“We started improving event processes, plus making rulebook changes immediately. As of this moment, there are new rules and procedures in place to prevent situations like this from happening again,” he said.

Furste further said the organisation would continue learning from the episode and working to improve its processes. “We learn and try to get better everyday,” he said.

The apology came after Hyrox faced a wave of criticism over the incident involving Australian athlete Joanna Wietrzyk during a race in Beijing.

Videos from the event went viral after Wietrzyk soiled herself during the indoor fitness competition, which alternates between one-kilometre runs and exercises such as sled pushes, burpee jumps, indoor rowing and lunges while carrying a sandbag.

The episode sparked a fierce debate within the Hyrox community, with some competitors questioning why Wietrzyk had been allowed to continue and criticising organisers over their handling of the situation.

Wietrzyk, however, defended her decision to push through and finish the race. In a now-deleted Instagram story, she wrote, “Go hard or go home. A win is a win,” while thanking people for their support. She added that she would be back soon and stood by her decision to continue competing.

After Wietrzyk’s identity was shared online, Hyrox on Monday warned that anyone targeting her with abuse or threats of violence would be barred from future events.

“There is no place in our community for threats of violence or encouragement to harm an athlete,” it said, adding that anyone identified as engaging in such behaviour through comments, direct messages or social media would be “permanently banned” from all Hyrox events.

ONLINE BACKLASH

The incident has triggered a fierce debate over Hyrox’s health and safety standards and the responsibility of athletes during competitions, as well as calling for Wietrzyk's disqualification.

"These volunteers were not even paid, yet they had to put themselves at risk and clean up human waste without proper protection while she continued competing. What about their welfare and safety? What about the other participants who had to race beside her, smell her s**t and come into contact with the contaminated carpet and equipment?" one user questioned on Instagram.

Another person said, "These incidents have made the Hyrox sport scene feel like a toxic and individualistic environment. It doesn’t promote anything other than making the sport look bad."

One more Instagram user said, "She doesn’t deserve the championship, she made it hard for other people to compete, if someone was spitting on everyone else around them, they would be disqualified, this is much worse! Disqualify her."

"You should apologise to all athletes who competed in Beijing and give a firm commitment that any athlete that does this again will be immediately removed from the field of play," another person added.

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