Hyrox athlete admits ‘wrong decision’ to keep racing, as new rules let officials pull competitors

A Hyrox athlete who kept racing through a sudden bout of diarrhoea in Beijing has said publicly that she got it wrong, just as she prepares to return to competition. Australian Joanna Wietrzyk, 24, told the BBC in her first interview since the incident that “the decision that I made in hindsight was the wrong decision and I’m truly sorry for everyone that I did affect.”

What happened in Beijing

Wietrzyk holds the women’s world record in the sport, with a time of 54:25. She says she went into the September race in Beijing “feeling fresh, feeling really, really good,” but that about halfway through, “everything did transpire.” She later said the cause was a bacterial infection from food poisoning. Photos of her appeared widely online, and she carried on to win the women’s Pro event.

The Mirror reported that organisers removed contaminated equipment and closed off affected lanes. The venue was also set for a deep clean, including carpet replacement, before the next day’s event. Hyrox China has reportedly refunded some competitors’ entry fees.

“My only focus is on racing”

Asked why she did not stop, Wietrzyk pointed to the mindset of elite competition. “As a very competitive person… and an elite athlete that I am, my only focus is on racing,” she said, adding: “Obviously I did put other people at risk.” She said nobody encouraged her to withdraw at the time, but also that “it was my decision to continue racing so I take full responsibility for that.”

Her first public reaction did little to help. She posted a hospital selfie on Instagram captioned “Go hard or go home… a win is a win.” She has since deleted it and says she regrets it, explaining that she was in “flight or fight mode” while seeking treatment. In the week after the race she apologised, forfeited the win and retroactively withdrew from the event. Pressed on whether the apology came too late or was damage limitation, she said she had not expected the scale of exposure and “needed those days to reflect on it and process it.”

How Hyrox has responded

The sport’s governing side has also acknowledged fault. Co-founder Moritz Fürste apologised and said it was a mistake not to react immediately during the race. Hyrox has now introduced rules that let race directors remove any athlete whose vomit, urine or faeces risk contamination or threaten the welfare of themselves or others. That matters in an event held mostly indoors on shared equipment. Hyrox alternates a kilometre of running with exercises such as sled pushes, burpee jumps, rowing and sandbag lunges. Founded in Hamburg in 2017, it has grown rapidly worldwide.

Hyrox also said anyone sending abuse or threats to the athlete would be banned from future events.

A return under scrutiny

Wietrzyk described the backlash as “traumatic” and said she had considered leaving the sport. She suggested she should not have received “such backlash” and said she is “only human,” while acknowledging that she had also received support. She said the episode showed social media can be a very “toxic place.”

She is due to compete in the Elite 15 division in Hamburg on Friday. In an Instagram video from the city she said she was “super excited to go back doing what I love.” She told the BBC she was nervous and hoped the episode would not define her: “I don’t want it to become my identity.” After weeks of reflection, she added, “there is more to life… than just racing and just winning.”

Her return will test whether a sport that has grown quickly can balance competitive drive with the health of everyone sharing the race floor. The rule change suggests the sport no longer wants to leave that decision to the athletes alone.

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