Lotto-Dstny have confirmed that sports director Allan Davis will no longer join the team at the upcoming Tour de France following allegations that he sent unwanted direct messages to a woman on social media.
Davis will not join the Lotto-Dstny staff at the event, in what the team said was by mutual agreement, three days before the Tour de France begins on July 1 in Bilbao. Lotto-Dstny have called the incident a 'personal case' that they felt did not involve the team.
Cyclingnews has reached out to Davis regarding the allegations. He has not responded before the publishing of this story.
"The team will not react on a private matter that came out Tuesday concerning sports director Allan Davis," Lotto-Dstny said in its initial statement to press members on Wednesday.
"It's a personal affair, and this has nothing to do with Lotto Dstny. Allan will not be in the Tour de France in order not to mix personal matters with team matters."
Davis has been accused of sending unwanted direct messages to a woman on her social media account. Screenshots of the direct messages were published on the woman's social media channel on Tuesday.
Cyclingnews reached out to the woman who has alleged Davis sent her unwanted direct messages. She wishes to remain anonymous but confirmed that the unwanted messages were sent by direct messages to her Twitter account in May and June.
The woman described herself as a cyclist, a writer and a former photographer. She stated that she initially thought Davis had contacted her through a direct message after her tweets about looking for work. She said that he later asked for her CV for what she thought might have led to a potential job within the team or the sport.
"I thought maybe I would give him the benefit of the doubt. Then he sends me photos. I kept trying to redirect the conversation to that I was looking for a job and a bit about myself. I ended the conversation by saying I needed to go out for a ride to end the conversation. He messaged again, and that is the one that is on Twitter. I was disappointed. I felt cheap," she said.
The woman stated that she came forward on social media to show other women in the sport that what she felt was inappropriate behaviour should not be dismissed and that women should feel empowered to speak about their experiences.
"I don't want people to feel scared to speak out. That is one of the things that I see when people have messaged me. They are really scared. I don't want other women to feel like that. I would like this to be a takeaway for women not to feel intimidated. That was why I was a bit more open," she said.
"To comment, 'Well, who are you,' ... I'm a cyclist, a writer, a human, it shouldn't matter. I'm not a Tour de France winner; you're right. What's your point?" she said regarding some of the comments directed toward her.
"It doesn't matter who I am; I'm a human, a woman, and it always comes back to the same thing. I'm not the only one."
She also alleged that Davis had since sent her a direct message in which he requested that she "delete potential tweets involving his image or in writing" and that he has notified authorities to report anyone who has publicly damaged his image.
The woman has alleged that she was contacted by a Lotto-Dstny press officer who asked her not to publish her allegations against Davis publicly on Twitter. Cyclingnews reached out to Lotto-Dstny and to the team’s Chief Business Officer, Yana Seel, regarding the claims. “We will not comment [on] it. It’s a private case of Allan and has nothing to do with the team,” Seel replied.
Lotto-Dsnty published a statement on their team website on Wednesday outlining their reason why Davis will not be joining the team at the Tour de France and that they will make no further comments.
"Lotto Dstny has taken notice of the allegations of transgressive behaviour, expressed towards a sports director of the team and published by a person on Twitter," Lotto-Dstny wrote in a published statement.
"'Please note that this is a personal case', emphasizes the team, 'and this has nothing to do with the team.'" the statement read. "In order to keep the peace, it has been decided, by mutual agreement, to keep the sports director out of the Tour de France."
"The team will not make additional comments on this case and asks to respect the privacy of those involved."
