Joanna Wietrzyk won the Hyrox Hamburg event on Friday, a day after giving an interview where she admitted that her actions last month at a competition put others at risk when she soiled her but stayed on the track.
In the Hyrox Elite 15 Series season opener, Wietrzyk took the women’s title in 56:10, her first time competing since a now-viral moment in Bejing in September where she was dealing with a bowel issue but was allowed to remain in the event.
Images and video from the Bejing competition showed that her legs, shoes and socks were stained as she moved along through each station, while other athletes after her used the same equipment and mats. Wietrzyk, 24, would win in Bejing, but drew a wave of backlash from the Hyrox community, who also turned their frustrations toward officials for letting the event continue.
In the hours after the incident, Hyrox released a statement denouncing criticism of the handling of the matter and warned that it would not tolerate frustrations directed toward any athlete. The response triggered even more criticism, with a general sentiment that risk for other athletes was being overlooked.
Wietrzyk issued her own apology on social media and said she “should have made a different choice,” and in an interview released by the BBC on Thursday she spoke on the harm she could have caused to others on the track but pushed back on harmful comments directed at her on social media.
“I started that race with the intention of finishing the race and winning,” Wietrzyk said. “And when everything did happen during the race, that was still my intention. I didn’t really think about those around me, which looking back at the decision that I made in hindsight, was the wrong decision.”
Wietrzyk retroactively withdrew from the race and forfeited her points from the Beijing event while Hyrox revised its rules on “biological-contamination incidents.” Athletes who competed the same day as Wietrzyk were offered refunds.
But the hybrid racing community remained vocal about why Hyrox did not immediately address why the incident was not in violation of its own rules when athletes at other events have been disqualified for smaller infractions. And a subsequent statement from Hyrox co-founder Moritz Fürste seemed to conflict with the organization’s own messaging.
“Hyrox made a mistake by not reacting immediately during the race,” Fürste said after the Beijing incident. “In the end it is my job to foresee these potential incidents — and I did not. 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.”
Wietrzyk’s own behavior immediately after her win in Beijing appeared to show that she did not grasp the severity of the matter with a post on social media accompanied by a caption that read, “go hard or go home they say … a win is a win.”
In the weeks that followed, chatter over how her actions were handled seemingly calmed, but Thursday’s interview on the eve of her return to Hyrox reignited discussion and criticism that has now reached into a new season.
Wietrzyk was clear to note that while she was sorry for staying on the track and putting others in a difficult position, the magnitude of disparaging comments on social media proved to be hurtful.
“But to experience that was very eye-opening for me to see the effect of social media nowadays,” Wietrzyk said. “Especially from someone who’s 24 just out there racing. Yes, I did make the wrong decision, but I don’t believe I should have received such backlash and such scrutiny online. At the end of the day, I’m only human.”
She also said the remarks were “traumatic” and her judgment in trying to win clouded her decision-making in Beijing.
The Hyrox Elite Series continues with its next event in London on Dec 3 and 4, with Wietrzyk leading Lauren Weeks by just seven points with 547.
