A boyfriend is being slammed online after continuing to compete at a fitness event while his passed-out girlfriend is being treated by paramedics.
The fitness competition has ignited fierce debate after footage emerged showing a male competitor completing his race while his female partner lay unconscious, receiving emergency medical care.
The incident occurred during a HYROX event in Sydney over the weekend, where participants tackle eight one-kilometer runs interspersed with challenging workout stations, including sled pushes, burpee jumps, rowing, and wall balls, its official website explains.
The high-intensity competition has exploded in popularity globally, with many treating competition as the ultimate fitness achievement comparable to running a marathon.
Aaron Boundy, a fellow competitor who witnessed the events unfold, captured the controversial moment on video and shared it on TikTok, where it quickly went viral.
His footage shows paramedics attending to a woman who had collapsed during the wall ball station while her partner continues competing in the background.
“That guy’s girl just fainted and like full hit the deck, she’s unresponsive, and he just kept doing the wall balls and then crossed the line by himself.
“He’s left her there … what a piece of s**t. I think I’ve just witnessed one of the worst things in my life,” Boundy stated in his video commentary.
The witness described how the woman appeared to be ‘twitching on the floor’ as medical personnel erected barriers around her for treatment.
According to Boundy’s account, the male competitor briefly approached his unconscious partner, tapped her leg, and then inquired with race officials whether her condition would prevent him from completing the event.
“They’re like, technically no… then [he] ran off and finished the race without her,” Boundy explained.
The viral footage has divided public opinion dramatically.
Critics have condemned the man’s actions as heartless and selfish, with social media users expressing outrage at his apparent prioritization of the competition over his partner’s well-being.
“If we signed up as a couple, and he continued without me due to a medical emergency – especially being UNCONSCIOUS – he could continue the rest of his life without me too,” one viewer commented.
“I hope that’s her ex now,” another agreed.
Others have questioned the broader HYROX culture, describing it as ‘cult-like’ and suggesting that some participants become dangerously obsessed with completion at any cost.
However, defenders of the competitor have emerged, arguing that context matters. Some suggest that with professional medical staff present, there was little the partner could have done to assist.
A woman claiming to be the collapsed competitor herself reportedly commented on the video, stating: “My first two questions to my partner when I came to was ‘Did you finish it for us, and what time did we get?’ And for context, if you bothered to show it, he came back straight away.”
A further X user added: “Meh, I’m an ER doc and he couldn’t do much except be at her side for sentimentality. Nothing wrong with continuing the competition.”
Additional witnesses have disputed the narrative, claiming the video misrepresented events and that the man checked on his partner multiple times during medical treatment.
Mat Lock, Country Manager for HYROX APAC and Technical Director for HYROX Elite Racing, confirmed to the New York Post that: “The lady in question was assessed by the medical team at the wall ball station and then quickly relocated by wheelchair to the medical zone for treatment.”
He added that she ‘recovered sufficiently to leave on foot with her entourage and was advised to seek follow-up medical advice as a precaution.’
Regarding competition rules, Lock clarified that ‘both teammates are required to complete the full race to be eligible for a finisher time and ranking,’ potentially providing context for the competitor’s decision to continue.
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