Hyrox athlete who soiled herself during competition shares update after reflecting

Hyrox champion Joanna Wietrzyk has issued an apology after she infamously continued her race after soiling herself during the event in Beijing in January.

The 24-year-old Australian athlete, who currently holds the women's Hyrox world record, pushed through and continued racing around the track with faecal matter smeared on her legs.

The incident sparked backlash from the sporting community and beyond, with concerns raised over the safety of the track for all of the athletes behind her, while also raising questions over how far is too far when it comes to pushing yourself.

Following the race, she also shared a selfie of herself attached to an IV drip in an Instagram Story and wrote in the caption: "Go hard or go home … a win is a win. In all seriousness, thank you for all the support. I’ll be back soon x."

However, this was deleted, and now Wietrzyk has had time to reflect; she’s come back to social media with a video statement.

The athlete said: “So, I’ve had some time to reflect over the past six to eight weeks of everything that happened in Beijing.

“And firstly, I just want to say that I’m truly, truly so sorry to everyone that I affected, whether they were spectators or participants out on that race floor, for my decision to choose to continue to race.”

She admitted: “And having that time to reflect, I’ve really learned a lot from the situation. And yeah, I am very, very sorry for it all.

“But I also want to say thank you to each and every person that has reached out for support and has given me this overwhelming amount of support over the past couple of weeks.

“It’s been a very hard situation to navigate for me and very confronting as well. So, all the support, whether it was personally or through my team, has been honestly so incredible.”

The world champion added: “And it goes a lot longer in a far longer way than I can truly express right now. So thank you so much for that.”

She revealed that she's in Hamburg now, ready to race again in a couple of days in the Elite 15.

Wietrzyk concluded: “So I’m back out there on the race floor, and I’m super excited to go back doing what I love, and hopefully, see you all out there.”

The comments on the video are flooded with support, as one person wrote: “We’re all humans!!! You deserve the best always!! Best wishes to you, champ!!!”

A second added: “We live. We learn. Good luck with the race. You’ve said your apology; let’s hope the world lets you move on.”

And a third agreed: “Acknowledging a mistake and having the humility to apologise says a lot about your character. We all make mistakes, so don’t be too hard on yourself. It’s time to move forward.

“Now focus on what you do best, go out there and get that W. Good luck!”

It’s also the second apology from the athlete, who also released a similar message a week after the incident.

In a statement on 17 September, she wrote: "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 not to step off the track. I recognize that I should have made a different choice."

She admitted she takes 'responsibility' for her decision to continue, adding '[I] am deeply sorry for the discomfort and disruption it caused'.

Wietrzyk concluded: "I know my actions had an impact beyond myself, and I am genuinely sorry to everyone who was 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.”