Hyrox apologises for allowing race to continue after athlete soiled herself

The Hyrox athletics franchise has issued an apology for allowing an athlete to complete a race in Beijing despite soiling herself midway through, sparking outrage on social media. Joanna Wietrzyk, an Australian participant, was photographed with soiled legs and shoes continuing to use the mats and equipment at the competition held in Beijing on Saturday.

Although she finished the event without interference from the organizing committee and went on to win, concerns were raised about hygiene and the potential for other competitors to come into contact with contaminated surfaces.

Chinese social media users expressed their dissatisfaction, questioning the organization's handling of the situation and accusing Hyrox of favoritism towards foreign athletes. Hyrox co-founder Moritz Furste issued a statement on Monday, acknowledging the mistake and accepting responsibility for not intervening during the race. He also mentioned that new rules and procedures would be implemented to prevent similar incidents in the future.

The situation drew further attention when Chinese state broadcaster CCTV blamed regulatory flaws for not only posing health risks to participants but also undermining the fairness of the competition.