UCI Ethics Commission hands ten-year ban to former Hess Cycling head of performance

Proceedings were opened against Demko following complaints of professional misconduct from former staff at the team and allegations of harassment and psychological abuse from a rider who had cohabited with the Slovakian.

In a statement on Friday, the UCI outlined that the Ethics Commission had held a formal investigation into the allegations against Demko and concluded that he was in breach of the UCI code of ethics. 

The investigation found that Demko’s conduct included “the habitual use of aggressive and disrespectful language in the working environment, the unsafe and intimidating driving of team vehicles, and demeaning remarks concerning the physical appearance of staff and riders.” 

The Commission said that this behaviour constituted an abuse of his position that had “fallen short of the standards of integrity, care and diligence required of persons bound by the UCI Code of Ethics.”

The statement also outlined that Demko’s behaviour towards a rider he had coached and with whom he was in a relationship had included “requests to sever contact with persons she trusted, the dictation of the content of her messages to them, and a threatening message addressed to her psychologist […] humiliation by way of public denigration on social media, intimidation […] threats to disclose personal information and a threat directed against a person she trusted […] and infantilisation.”

The behaviour reportedly continued after the end of the relationship, and the Commission noted that “the fact that the above conduct arose within a consensual personal relationship between two adults did not remove it from the scope of the UCI Code of Ethics, given the coaching and dependent relationship between Mr Demko and the rider.”

As well as being handed a ten-year ban from any cycling-related activity organised by the UCI, Demko has been fined and ordered to pay the costs of the proceedings. The decision is subject to appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. 

The governing body noted that some of the complaints in the case had been received through its SpeakUp platform. “The UCI acknowledges the courage of the individuals who came forward in this matter, and recalls that any form of harassment or abuse is incompatible with the values of cycling,” read the statement.

The Hess Cycling Team was founded by Swiss businessman Rolf Hess in 2023 and switched its licence from Luxembourg to Great Britain ahead of its second season. The team disbanded in August 2025 amid sustained financial problems.