Hyrox co-founder apologises for fecal incontinence incident, says it was a mistake to not react immediately

The co-founder of Hyrox, Moritz Fürste, has apologised for the fecal incontinence incident that occurred at a recent Beijing event. The athlete, Joanna Wietrzyk, completed the race despite defecating during the competition. Wietrzyk, an Australian participant, finished the women's event despite the incident, which took place from September 10 to 13 at the Beijing competition.

Hyrox, a multi-workout fitness competition launched in Germany in 2017, has races in over 11 countries and over 30 cities. The co-founder acknowledged that his organization made a mistake by not reacting immediately during the race. He stated that rulebook changes were made immediately, and new rules and procedures have been put in place to prevent similar incidents from recurring.

The Beijing organizer had previously said that concerns about hygiene were legitimate, but drew backlash for not addressing the impact on other participants and suggesting different protocols for elite competitors.