Picnic PostNL turn to expert behind major Dutch elite sport investigation amid bombshell "culture of fear" allegations
Cycling
Picnic PostNL have appointed a leading Dutch sports researcher to investigate allegations of a "culture of fear" within the team, turning to an expert whose previous work uncovered widespread concerns over athlete welfare and harmful behaviour in elite sport.
Professor Marjan Olfers, a specialist in sports and law at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, will lead the independent investigation through research organisation Verinorm.
Her appointment comes almost two weeks after an explosive investigation by NOS Sport and In De Waaier prompted the Dutch WorldTour squad to announce that its internal culture would be examined.
"Reports in the media suggest that there is a culture of fear. We are going to investigate that scientifically," Olfers told NOS. "We are going to do that as thoroughly and as quickly as possible."
Team Picnic PostNL at the 2026 Tour de France
The expert behind a major Dutch sporting investigation
In June 2025, Olfers and fellow researcher Anton van Wijk presented Vlammende ambitie (Burning Ambition), a major study examining the culture of elite sport in the Netherlands and the pressures faced by athletes working within high-performance environments.
Conducted by Verinorm, the research involved questionnaires completed by 1,257 elite athletes, 220 coaches and 100 former elite athletes, alongside 470 interviews. In total, 26 sporting federations participated, representing 63 disciplines.
The study explored both positive and negative aspects of elite sport, including coaching relationships, athlete wellbeing, performance pressure and harmful behaviour. Among its findings were concerns over psychological and physical mistreatment, with approximately a quarter of the active elite athletes surveyed reporting experiences of physical, mental or verbal violence during 2024.
The researchers called for greater attention to athlete welfare and safer sporting environments, with the findings presented to representatives of the Dutch government and national sporting authorities.
Olfers will now turn her attention to Picnic PostNL, where interviews and questionnaires will form part of the investigation. No completion date or timetable for publication of her findings has been announced.
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The appointment follows the revelations published on 15 October by NOS Sport and cycling platform In De Waaier, whose investigation drew on conversations with 71 current and former riders and staff members.
Former rider Martijn Tusveld and former coach Adriaan Helmantel were among those who spoke publicly, describing an environment in which questioning management decisions could carry consequences. Nicolas Roche subsequently gave his own account of his time with the team, criticising its rigid approach to training and racing and arguing that management was not suited to cycling.
The allegations have also prompted differing responses from within the current organisation. Incoming sporting boss Roy Curvers, who will replace Rudi Kemna in 2027, rejected the suggestion that he had experienced a culture of fear during his 18 years with the team.
"We need to get to a situation where we are certain that nobody feels there is a culture of fear here," Curvers told Wielerflits. "We also need to be open to allowing external parties to look at this with us, but we certainly need to look in the mirror ourselves at what we can do better."
Picnic PostNL have maintained that they do not recognise themselves in the overall picture presented by the original investigation, while acknowledging the seriousness of the experiences described by former riders and staff.
In their statement on 15 October, the team committed to examining how its culture is experienced in practice and whether that matches the environment management believes it has created. They also pledged to implement any necessary improvements identified by an independent review.
Sponsors Picnic and PostNL have described the allegations as serious and made clear that they expect a thorough investigation. With Olfers now appointed and work beginning, the precise scope of the inquiry, when its findings will be published and what changes may follow remain unannounced.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- Fantastic news!anonymouscyclist29-10-2026
- Why not 11 then?
Rafionain-Glas29-10-2026 - Crikey... Zonneveld in charge of a team... never knew that was possible. You learn new things every dayRafionain-Glas29-10-2026
- Eccelente! Although cutd are a bit late to report on thisRafionain-Glas29-10-2026
- What he said!!Lozza29-10-2026
- If Tadej stays healthy, I don’t see the slightest chance of Remco winning the Tour. And then there are Jonas and Paul.MajorPayne29-10-2026
- @Guavaking, what are you talking about? Since 2024 no one alive climbs like Pogi and everyone knows it. Capish?PogiSloFans29-10-2026
- I reckon it would be neat if Jonas skipped the Tour, and went for getting the Giro and Vuelta again. Having every GT twice would be a flex. That's a shorter list, within a short one already. He doesn't "need" to win the Tour again. And why waste time going for second or worse as a former winner when you could lock in a really solid showing across all three? Plus Visma can go for the Green Jersey with Brennan and Wout, stages etc.wrsty29-10-2026
- That is exactly my opinion. I would rather see him winning Itzulia Basque country than risking it all at Paris-Roubaix. Than he will have all 7 major one week stage races in his pocket and since 2028 season he can try to win PR every single year. I also had a fractured vertebra, a broken collarbone and a dislocated shoulder and it took me more than a year before I could ride my bike without feeling any pain. Pog has access to incomparably medical care, but some things just can´t be rushed. And the Paris-Roubaix cobbles are absolute hell...Lukicinho29-10-2026
- smart move and good for cross!Ketterechts29-10-2026
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