Key Takeaways
- Hyrox co-founder Moritz Fürste apologized after officials let Joanna Wietrzyk continue racing in Beijing despite visibly soiling herself, admitting the company “made a mistake by not reacting immediately.”
- Wietrzyk won the women’s pro race, while footage of the incident sparked widespread criticism of Hyrox’s handling of athlete welfare and sanitation.
- Hyrox introduced new rules and procedures, deep-cleaned the venue, and urged people not to threaten or abuse Wietrzyk online.
Hyrox’s co-founder Moritz Fürste has apologized for letting an event in Beijing continue even though one of the competitors visibly soiled herself.
Competitor Joanna Wietrzyk of Australia competed in the women’s pro event at the Hyrox Beijing event on Saturday (Sept. 12), but videos and photos of the event showed that she was covered in what appeared to be watery feces. Despite this, she continued to participate in the event and officials did not stop her from doing so. As a result, the Beijing competition received widespread media attention, with fellow competitors and others criticizing the company.
“I need to address all of you directly concerning the recent events in China,” wrote Fürste in a statement shared on Instagram, which can be seen below. “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. In the end it is my job to foresee these potential incidents—and I did not.”
As a result of the situation, Fürste indicated that Hyrox would be implementing new rules immediately. “As of this moment, there are new rules and procedures in place to prevent situations like this from happening again,” he continued. “We learn and try to get better everyday.”
Hyrox is an indoor fitness racing series that has exploded in popularity since debuting in Hamburg, Germany, in 2017. It combines running with various other exercise activities, including sled pushes, burpee broad jumps, wall balls, and rowing. Hyrox was forced to deep clean the National Speed Skating Oval venue after the incident on Saturday, during which Wietryzk won the women’s pro race.
In the company’s first public statement addressing the incident, Hyrox told people not to subject Wietryzk to abuse online. “There is no place in our community for threats of violence or encouragement to harm an athlete,” the statement read, per The Independent.
