She said yes! Cape Town HYROX sees its first proposal

Cape Town’s latest HYROX fitness race delivered more than just sweat and medals this past weekend — it served up a surprise proposal that has social media swooning.

For those who haven’t heard of it yet, HYROX is a global fitness race phenomenon designed to test both endurance and strength.

The race format includes eight 1km runs, each followed by a functional workout station — including sled pushes, burpee broad jumps and rowing. With divisions to suit all fitness levels, it’s billed as “a race for everybody”, from elite athletes to everyday fitness fans.

Founded in Germany in 2017, HYROX has since expanded to over 80 countries, and South Africa has embraced the challenge with gusto.

After a successful Cape Town debut in 2024, and a 7,000-strong turnout at Johannesburg’s Nasrec Expo Centre in March, the race returned to the Mother City on 19 and 20 July for another high-energy weekend.

 

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A post shared by HYROX South Africa (@hyroxsa)

And that’s where the magic happened. HYROX athlete Andre Pretorius dropped to one knee to propose to his partner — both in sport and in life — Mieke van Zyl.

 

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A post shared by mieke (@mieksvanzyl_x)

The emotional moment sent the crowd into a frenzy and quickly lit up Instagram, with @hyroxsa’s post garnering over 14,500 likes in just two days.

 

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A post shared by mieke (@mieksvanzyl_x)

The comments section became a flood of hearts, happy tears and congratulations. “A couple who Hyrox together, stays together,” one user wrote. “This is the type of stuff we should be sharing,” another chimed in.

Taking to Instagram to express her excitement over her fairytale surprise proposal, Mieke wrote:

“Wow after 7 years of dating we are finally engaged…I am still speechless at the level of detail that went into this moment. Yay here’s to my forever bestie! Lief jou so baie! [Love you so much!]”

With more HYROX events on the horizon — and now, a wedding — this heartwarming proposal has only added to the sport’s growing fanbase in SA.

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Feature Image: Instagram / @mieksvanzyl_x