"We didn't find any indication that he was being excluded or bullied" - BORA - hansgrohe unsure of Cian Uijtdebroeks' story on whatsapp group
Cycling
After Cian Uijtdebroeks' departure from BORA - hansgrohe, a rumour surged that the team had a whatsapp group created during the Vuelta a España where several teammates were talking behind his back. The team took on measures to find this, however there was no indication of it.
“This was a bad thing for the team and for the sport. There is now a solution and we want to leave it at that. But we do take this matter seriously," team DS Rolf Aldag told Het Laatste Nieuws. The Belgian clearly left the team on bad terms, and broke his contract on the 1st of December - then soon signing for Team Visma | Lease a Bike. He did not say it himself, Dutch journalist hinted at the creation of a group without him.
“You don't want that in your team. We have investigated that. We have spoken to all our riders, but we really haven't found anything." At the time, Uijtdebroeks had already been vocal about Aleksandr Vlasov wanting to be the team's best placed rider, and creating an internal competition, in the same race. Regardless of that group having existed or not, it would've likely not played much of a role as the 20-year old looked set to leave in any scenario.
“That of course says nothing about the emotion that Cian felt. I'm just saying that we didn't find any indication that he was being excluded or bullied," Aldag argues. "What still bothers me is: if something happened in the Vuelta, why didn't he immediately put it on the table?”
Read also
Very strange. Either a) Cian was being mistreated and Bora is covering it up, or b) Cian made up or exaggerated a problem in order to force a trade. No way for us to know, but to me B seems more likely. Bora has no history of this and no reason to let abusive teammates run off a talented young rider. Cian, on the other hand, got to join the best team in the world and was immediately given their main GC spot at the Giro (and yes, I know they say they aren't trying to win it, but it is a great opportunity for him nonetheless). And given the way TJV/VLab has been operating lately -- clearly willing to push boundaries to poach riders and even sponsors -- this is not so farfetched. Doesn't mean that is what happened, but it is what makes most sense from a distance.
Just in
Play for FREE! Fantasy Tour of Flanders
Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter today!
Popular news
Latest comments
- Good, hopefully Jonas goes also so we get a nice duelvappaxbipmv03-04-2025
- right? i think it’s hungry journalists that fuel this, and i understand the jam they can be in trying to create stories, but you’d hate to think ANYONE is failing to appreciate how RARE someone like van der poel is (or how LUCKY we are to have both mvdp and pog racing at the same time). a little perspective is a good thing…OCexile03-04-2025
- Anyone know how long that 213km ride took? Coz without that the segment speeds don’t reveal anything surprising. If it took him Less than 5h ok but otherwise it was just some interval training for him.Jumpyjohn03-04-2025
- Hinault was even lighter than Pog at 62 kg when he won PR in 1981, beating Roger van Vlaeminck no less (albeit at the fag end of the latter's career), so it can be done.Cooldude03-04-2025
- Having to shoulder too much pressure from the Belgain public too much that he made a tactical mistake. That's what public pressure does to you. Poor Wout! Hopefully, lady luck befalls him soon.
KerisVroom03-04-2025 - If he's very lucky maybe he can podium a Tour one season, I certainly don't believe he can win it, evervappaxbipmv03-04-2025
- Yeah, as if fans would now have acquired a right to an MVPD every generation ;-)Jumpyjohn03-04-2025
- Yeah not this year anyway but worth keeping an eye on him (and some others) in future.Jumpyjohn03-04-2025
- poor kid, saddled with all that “next mvdp” crap. eeesh…OCexile03-04-2025
- I don't think so, maybe in a different GT, not in the Tour. Last year, to be 3rd, he would have to be better than Remco. And he wasn't, on any terrainvappaxbipmv03-04-2025