Coach of Hyrox World Champion Who Soiled Herself During Competition Speaks Out, Slams ‘Personal Attacks’ Against Athlete

The coach of a Hyrox athlete who faced backlash for soiling herself during a race has spoken out in her defense

Joanna Wietrzyk, 22, divided opinion for continuing a race in Beijing on Saturday, Sept. 12, after she became ill

Coach Chris Bayers called the situation unforeseen and emphasized the need for fair judgment in a statement he shared on Instagram in the wake of the controversy

The coach of a Hyrox athlete who divided opinion after soiling herself during a race has spoken out in her defense.

Joanna Wietrzyk, 22, was criticized after she continued to compete in the Hyrox race for ages 16-24 at the National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing on Saturday, Sept. 12, after becoming ill.

Photos and videos circulating online appeared to show fecal matter on her legs, and the Australian athlete posted a now-deleted selfie of herself from what seemed to be a hospital bed on Instagram after winning the race in 1 hour, 1 minute, 23 seconds.

"Go hard or go home … a win is a win. In all seriousness, thank you for all the support. I'll be back soon x," she wrote, per The Athletic and news.com.au , while commenters online have argued that she posed health risks by staying in the race.

In response to the backlash, Wietrzyk's coach, Chris Bayens, defended her in a statement that he posted on Instagram.

"What happened was an extraordinary set of circumstances that were unforeseen, rapidly evolving and almost impossible to fully comprehend in real time," he said.

"Decisions were made under competition conditions by an athlete, judges and officials, all responding to a situation none of them could reasonably have prepared for," Bayens continued.

Bayens said it would be easy to "construct the perfect response" in hindsight, and explained that "lessons can be taken" from the decisions made at the time.

"But judging someone's intent, character or morality through the clarity of hindsight is neither fair nor honest," he added. "Sport occasionally produces moments that are imperfect and deeply human."

"Discussion is legitimate. The hatred and personal attacks that have followed are not," Bayens insisted.

Bayens captioned the post, "The physical health and performance of an athlete is my job."

"The mental health of athletes is shaped far more by the community around them, and right now that community should take a hard look at itself," he added.

Bayens said, "No one is perfect, not in sport, not on social media, not in real life. What happened was extraordinary. The hatred that has followed is ugly."

PEOPLE has reached out to Chris Bayens for further comment, but did not immediately hear back.

Hyrox bosses have also responded to the incident, with co-founder Moritz Fürste apologizing to "all that were directly or indirectly affected," as well as pledging changes, in a statement posted to Instagram on Monday, Sept. 14.

"Hyrox made a mistake by not reacting immediately during the race," he wrote. "In the end it is my job to foresee these potential incidents — and I did not."

He continued, "Of course, we started improving event processes, plus making rule book changes immediately. As of this moment, there are new rules and procedures in place to prevent situations like this from happening again."

Hyrox, founded in Germany in 2017, is described on its website as "the fastest-growing fitness sport in the world."

Participants run around 0.6 miles and visit a functional workout station, repeating the process eight times. Functional workouts include sled pushes, rowing, burpee broad jumps and wall balls.

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In a previous Instagram statement addressing the incident, Hyrox organizers wrote, "In this instance, an unforeseen situation arose in which protocols designed for elite competition and mass participation became blurred, creating ambiguity in how they were applied and understood."

"We will continue to listen. We will continue to learn. And, above all, we will continue to put the welfare and dignity of the athletes at the center of what comes next," they added.