Hyrox athlete who competed covered in faeces issues apology and forfeits her win

Joanna Wietrzyk has relinquished her win after competing at HYROX Beijing 2026 (Picture: Fred Lee/Getty Images) Hyrox female world record holder Joanna Wietrzyk has issued an apology statement after winning a competition in Beijing covered in her own faeces. The Australian star athlete went viral for completing the indoor fitness competition at the weekend despite soiling herself mid-way through, and has now forfeited her win after calls for her to be disqualified. She said to her followers: ‘I want to offer my sincere apology to the people of China, my fellow competitors, the spectators and the Hyrox organizers for what happened during the race in Beijing. ‘I felt completely fit and healthy at the start of the race, with no reason to expect any illness. Looking back, I regret the decision to not have stepped off the track. I recognise that I should have made a different choice. I take responsibility for my decision to continue and am deeply sorry for the discomfort and disruption it caused.’ She added that her actions had an ‘impact beyond herself’ and that she was ‘genuinely sorry’ to those who were affected. ‘I am learning from this experience and will carry those lessons with me, including remembering that there is more to life than racing and knowing when it is right to step away,’ she explained. ‘On reflection, I have decided to retroactively withdraw from the race and forfeit the points I earned.’ Joanna had originally posted a now-deleted Instagram story which said: ‘Go hard or go home, they say… A win is a win’ following the race.’ While competing at the event at the weekend, Joanna was photographed running, doing lunges, burpees and wall balls while covered in excrement, alongside fellow competitors. With the race using shared equipment and surfaces, thousands online branded the incident ‘disgusting’ and ‘selfish’, slating the athlete for continuing, and Hyrox for not disqualifying her. Ask Metro Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications. ‘That’s disgusting, she should’ve been disqualified straight away,’ wrote one person on TikTok. ‘She should’ve been disqualified,’ added another. ‘As a nurse, I can’t even tell you how many sicknesses and diseases are found in [faeces] alone. The official Hyrox account had initially released a statement in support of Joanna and her ability to finish the race, despite leaking faeces on the floor. It read: ‘We ask our athletes to push themselves to the highest levels. At times, they will go beyond what even we thought was possible. That courage, resilience and refusal to give in are precisely what makes elite athletes so extraordinary.’ Hyrox has updated the rule so athletes who soil themselves during events will now be stopped (Picture: VCG via Getty) Again, this received fierce backlash, prompting the co-founder Moritz Fuerste to issue an apology on Tuesday. ‘Hyrox made a mistake by not reacting immediately during the race,’ Mo said. ‘Of course, 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.’ The intense backlash to the incident has proved to be a lot for the young athlete, with Joanna adding in her statement: ‘Thank you to those standing by me, both as an athlete and as a person, during this time, and to everyone who has reached out with kindness and support. ‘It means more to me than I can properly express right now. I will be taking some time to recover, reflect and look after myself and my family away from the noise.’ Joanna’s apology has been welcomed with open arms by her followers and the Hyrox community. Fellow Hyrox Elite 15 athlete Luke Greer, who was also competing at the event in Beijing, posted pictures from the trip right before Joanna’s apology, with the caption: ‘Kill em with Kindess – Selena Gomez.’ Followers agreed, writing: ‘Don’t let this break you Jo, you’re amazing and still an inspiration to many of us. Hope to see you smiling out there again very soon.’ To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video ‘Not many people understand the mindset of the best in the world. This is a new sport with ever evolving rules. You did what you’ve trained to do,’ added another. Others insisted that everyone makes mistakes and encouraged Joanna to ‘keep her head up’. Wietrzyk’s coach, Chris Bayens, also spoke out in her defence earlier in the week, saying: ‘It is very easy to construct the perfect response once the moment has passed. Hindsight gives people time, information and distance that simply did not exist for those actually living it. ‘Those decisions can be reviewed and lessons can be taken from them. But judging someone’s intent, character or morality through the clarity of hindsight is neither fair nor honest. Sport occasionally produces moments that are imperfect and deeply human. ‘Discussion is legitimate. The hatred and personal attacks that have followed are not.’ Do you have a story you’d like to share? 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