Aussie HYROX athlete apologizes after soiling herself during competition that sparked uproar world

Australian HYROX athlete Joanna Wietrzyk has issued a public apology following her win in an endurance event in Beijing – after she soiled herself during the race.

The 24-year-old, from Melbourne, refused to drop out of the event despite streams of faeces running down her legs as she powered to victory during the gruelling competition last Saturday.

Wietrzyk's decision to push on sparked ferocious criticism of the organisers for allowing her to continue competing.

The Australian athlete issued a statement today apologising to other competitors and revealing she had forfeited her win at the event.

She wrote on Instagram: 'I want to offer my sincere apology to the people of China, my fellow competitors, the spectators, and the HYROX organizers for what happened during the race in Beijing.

'I felt completely fit and healthy at the start of the race, with no reason to expect any illness.

'Looking back, I regret the decision not to step off the track. I recognize that I should have made a different choice.

'I take responsibility for my decision to continue and am deeply sorry for the discomfort and disruption it caused.'

Wietrzyk said she had thought about the incident and was 'genuinely sorry to everyone who was affected'.

'I am learning from this experience and will carry those lessons with me, including remembering that there is more to life than racing and knowing when it is right to step away,' she wrote.

'On reflection, I have decided to retroactively withdraw from the race and forfeit the points I earned.'

The Melbourne athlete then thanked those who supported her during the days of backlash following the event.

'Thank you to those standing by me, both as an athlete and as a person, during this time, and to everyone who has reached out with kindness and support,' Wietrzyk wrote.

'It means more to me than I can properly express right now. I will be taking some time to recover, reflect, and look after myself and my family, away from the noise.'

Daily Mail previously revealed that major sponsor Puma had distanced itself from the athlete by scrubbing references to her from its various country websites.

The incident on Saturday also prompted HYROX co-founder Moritz Fürste to issue a personal statement pledging to implement immediate rule changes.

Prior to the weekend's incident, official event rules punished athletes for minor infringements such as littering on the course or clearing their nose on the floor, but there were no rules relating to faecal matter.

Wietrzyk's statement drew hundreds of comments within minutes of being uploaded.

Commenters were deeply divided on whether the apology was sincere or the result of public pressure.

'This apology is just not good enough, not least because it has come far too late ... Truly terrible sportsmanship putting your fellow athletes' health at serious risk, never mind the spectators and volunteers,' one wrote.

'Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but during that moment,t nobody knows e