At 48, Taiwanese-American singer and actor Van Ness Wu completed his first Hyrox race during the event held in Beijing from September 10 to 13. Wu and his doubles partner Han Chao finished the challenging race in 1 hour, 11 minutes, and 53 seconds, according to an Instagram post dated September 14. Hyrox is a fitness competition combining an eight-kilometer run with eight functional workout stations, including SkiErg, sled push and pull, rowing, farmer’s carry, sandbag lunges, and wall balls.
Wu, who gained fame as a member of Taiwanese boy band F4 and for his role in the 2001 drama *Meteor Garden*, prepared for nearly three months ahead of the event. His interest in the race reportedly began in October 2025 after hearing about it from fellow Taiwanese-American singer Nicky Lee and Taiwanese rapper E.SO. Wu’s training was complicated by an old knee injury requiring ongoing rehabilitation, as well as commitments to the F’Forever 1st World Tour, a reunion project featuring Wu alongside F4 members Jerry Yan and Vic Chou, as well as Mayday frontman Ashin.
A strong advocate of fitness, Wu has previously stated in interviews that he typically devotes up to 1½ hours daily to working out, with an additional hour or more for dancing. On some occasions, his training sessions have spanned four to five hours.
Wu’s participation came a day after the Beijing Hyrox event attracted widespread attention due to an incident involving Australian elite athlete Joanna Wietrzyk, who experienced faecal incontinence during the women’s pro race on September 12. Despite the incident, Wietrzyk was allowed to continue and ultimately won the race. The event sparked public criticism over hygiene and race management, prompting Hyrox co-founder Moritz Furste to issue an apology and acknowledge that organisers should have acted immediately. Chinese authorities overseeing the event confirmed that contaminated areas were isolated, thoroughly cleaned, disinfected, and affected equipment replaced or removed.
Other notable participants included South Korean athlete and television personality Hong Beom-seok, who competed in the pro men’s doubles on September 13. Known internationally as the runner-up of Netflix reality competition *Physical: 100 Season 2 – Underground* (2024), Hong is a former special forces soldier and firefighter who has become a regular on the Hyrox circuit. He also competed in Singapore in April alongside K-pop idol Minho from boy band Shinee. Hong and his partner, however, were disqualified in Beijing after reportedly completing 99 of the required 100 wall balls.
Chinese actor Ryan Zheng, 40, participated as part of a four-man team in the men’s relay on September 11. Best known for his role on the variety show *Keep Running*, the Chinese adaptation of South Korea’s *Running Man*, Zheng completed his first fitness competition with a time of 2 hours, 22 minutes, and 29 seconds. Following the race, he livestreamed his finisher medal on social media and expressed excitement about celebrating with hotpot.