An apology from HYROX founder Moritz Fürste has done little to calm the backlash over Australian athlete Joanna Wietrzyk’s public pooping episode.
Fürste and the higher-ups at Hyrox have been scrambling to explain why nobody stopped Wietrzyk from competing in the grueling competition, even when she had fecal matter visibly dripping down her legs.
“Joke of a founder,” a social media user branded Fürste in light of the backlash.
HYROX founder Moritz Fürste’s apology has done little to calm the backlash over Joanna Wietrzyk’s public pooping episode
Marcus Brandt/picture alliance via Getty Images
HYROX is a global fitness race that combines running with functional fitness exercises, like burpees, lunges, and wall balls.
Joanna Wietrzyk competed in the Hyrox competition in Beijing on September 12.
She crossed the finish line as a winner, completing the women’s solo event with a time of 61 minutes and 23 seconds. But her victory has forced Hyrox to change the rules.
Organizers of the event were slammed for allowing Wietrzyk to compete in the race despite having a messy bathroom emergency mid-race.
Footage online showed the Aussie athlete refusing to call it quits and continuing the race even after soiling herself.
Fellow competitors accused her of contaminating the course and the equipment, thus affecting their performance.
Some netizens called her a “legend” while others said she was “disgusting” and “selfish” for continuing the race
On one hand, social media users praised Wietrzyk for her victory, calling her an “absolute legend for carrying on.”
But others called her “disgusting” and “selfish” for not being considerate about other competitors and for “inconveniencing everyone.”
Following the controversy, organizers confirmed they removed the affected equipment from the venue and deep-cleaned it.
They also said they conducted a disinfection of the lanes and would replace the entire carpet once the competition concludes.
Hyrox co-founder issued an apology and said they updated their rulebook following the messy incident
Fürste also hoped to pacify critics by releasing a statement online.
“I apologize 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,” he said in his statement.
The Hyrox co-founder admitted that they made a mistake by not immediately reacting to the situation during the race.
“In the end, it is my job to foresee these potential incidents, and I did not,” he continued.
He also said Hyrox was making changes to their rulebook to prevent similar incidents from happening.
Earlier, as per the rulebook, competitors would be penalized for spitting, littering, clearing their nostrils onto the floor, and creating “slip hazards” with water at aid stations.
The rulebook has now been updated following the latest incident involving Wietrzyk’s messy episode.
“As of this moment, there are new rules and procedures in place to prevent situations like this from happening again,” Fürste said. “We learn and try to get better every day.”
Netizens slammed Fürste’s statement and said, “This apology is just not enough”
Despite Fürste’s best attempts, critics weren’t easily appeased and said, “This apology is just not enough.”
“Hydrox is suppose to be fun, community building, a way for those that love challenging themselves to come together and compete. But this… this you allowed one persons selfish behavior to taint it all,” Phyllicia Victoria, a wellness influencer with 173K followers on Instagram, commented on his statement.
“She was literally drenched in 💩 and you guys allowed it. And gave her a win,” Victoria continued. “I can only imagine the smell mixed with sweat in the air for those that had to trail behind her. Horrible sportsmanship. Horrible accountability.”
Another questioned the founder, saying: “Are you going to DQ her? Are you and Joanna going to apologise to the volunteers who had to clean up her sh**? Or is her sh** golden because she is part of Elite 15 and therefore untouchable?”
“This is a very weak apology from Hyrox,” one commented online.
“How are you gonna hold the person accountable for the sh** show she caused?” asked another.
Jeanette Jenkins, who shares fitness content with her 1 million Instagram followers, said: “Defecating on yourself & leaving a trail of feces on the competition floor should be an immediate disqualification. Every athlete following her was put at a health risk & a disadvantage. This is basic human decency.”
Wietrzyk broke her silence on social media following her embarrassing bathroom emergency
Wietrzyk hasn’t been very vocal on social media following her headline-making performance over the weekend.
But she broke her silence with a selfie that seemed to have been clicked from a hospital bed with a drip attached to her hand.
“Go hard or go home they say,” she wrote. “ … A win is a win.”
“In all seriousness, thank you for all the support,” she added. “I’ll be back soon x.”
“Disqualify her. It was hazardous materials… Other athletes had to be careful where they stepped,” one commented online
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