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The organisers of global indoor fitness competition HYROX have apologised after Australian athlete Joanna Wietrzyk continued competing despite soiling herself during a race in China
In a statement posted on HYROX World's official Instagram on Monday, 14 September, HYROX co-founder Moritz Fürste said he wanted to address the incident that happened in Beijing directly.
"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," he wrote.
Fürste added that HYROX would immediately make changes to its rulebook and event procedures following the incident
"As of this moment, there are new rules and procedures in place to prevent situations like this from happening again.
"We learn and try to get better every day," he said.
On Saturday, 12 September, Wietrzyk was filmed continuing to compete after appearing to have suffered a bowel-related accident, with visible faecal matter on her legs and clothing
She went on to win the women's HYROX Pro event, prompting criticism online over sportsmanship and concerns about hygiene and the use of shared equipment and competition areas.
HYROX did not announce any penalty against Wietrzyk following the incident, and her result remains listed on the competition's social media platforms.
Wietrzyk has not publicly commented on the incident at the time of writing.
