Roy Curvers defends Picnic PostNL after allegations of toxic team culture

Roy Curvers, a former rider and now sports director at Picnic PostNL has responded to the allegations of excessive control and intimidation made in the NOS and In De Waaier investigation, claiming he has never experienced a culture of fear or an unsafe working environment at the team under team manager Iwan Spekenbrink and senior sports director Rudi Kemna.

Curvers has been part of the team for 18 years, first as a rider and then as a sports director. Wielerflits reports that Curvers was part of the team's Rider Council for a decade, often dealing with rider problems and communications. He will reportedly replace Kemna as senior sports director in 2027.

"If you take the very general picture of a culture of fear and an unsafe working atmosphere, I have never experienced it that way in all those years," Curvers told Wielerflits.

"As a rider, I experienced the time when the team grew from fifty to one hundred and fifty. We also went through a period where, as riders, we did not always agree with the developments within the team.

"I always had a role in the riders' council during those years. I recognise a number of the changes discussed in the podcast. But there was always room for dialogue. In my view, there has always been an open and honest culture where you could express your opinion on things. But I also understand that the final decisions rest with the management."

"If I had felt that an unsafe or fear-based culture prevailed, I wouldn't be here anymore. I would have tried to change something long ago. And if that hadn't worked, I would have left."

The Picnic team was rocked by the allegation in the investigation. Former coach Adriaan Helmantel claimed the organisation had become a "dictatorship" following Tom Dumoulin's 2017 Giro d'Italia victory and other success and rapid growth at the team.

Former rider Martijn Tusveld said he became afraid to express his opinions after questioning race tactics during the 2020 Giro d'Italia and then being overlooked for major races. He subsequently struggled with his mental health issues.

Curvers recognised some of the problems but denied there was a culture of fear or a dictatorship.  

"It was a team that grew and changed; those changes brought less pleasant aspects for some people," he said.

"Without judging how everyone experienced it, I did not experience it as a culture of fear or a dictatorship, but rather as a team that wanted to achieve something together in which we could all contribute."

Picnic have said they are planning for a place in the men's and women's 2027 WorldTour despite a terrible run of results in 2026. The UCI is set to judge their annual WorldTour licence application very soon.

Curvers believes the team is right to commission an independent investigation into their culture. He also hopes the team improves out on the road in 2027 despite losing a number of key staff such as sports director Matt Winston.

"Of course, we have to do something serious about this. From a sporting perspective, it was already clear after this disappointing year that things needed to change," Curvers said.

"You can just sense that a lot of people within the organisation want to roll up their sleeves. They are willing to take a truly critical look at themselves and at what we are doing together. So, with or without this media story, that is something we had to do anyway."

"We need to move towards a situation where we are certain that no one feels that a culture of fear prevails here. We must also be open to letting external parties take a look at this, but certainly also look in the mirror ourselves at what we can do better, so that this doesn't come crashing down on us again."