Philippe Gilbert wins the worlds in Valkenburg in 2012. Now a legal battle has gone against him and he must repay part of a huge bonus, with his salary details also made public in the process (Photo: Sirotti)
Former world champion Philippe Gilbert has been told by a Belgian court he must repay €300,000 in bonuses paid to him by his former employer.
The 34-year-old received the money in bonuses his team said were only paid on condition he remain with them.
However, when he left Omega Pharma-Lotto to ride for BMC Racing in 2012 it resulted in a lengthy legal battle and now he must return €300,000.
The issue arose in 2011 when Gilbert had a fantastic season and won all three Ardennes Classics - Amstel Gold Race, Fleche Wallonne and Liege-Bastogne-Liege.
He also won Brabantse Pijl, Tour of Belgium, the ZLM Tour, the Belgian national championships, Clásica San Sebastián and GP Quebec; all of which put him in line for a bonus of €715,000.
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This was to be paid on top of his €1.2 million annual salary; giving him earnings of just over €1.9 million before prize money and any personal sponsorship or marketing deals were taken into account.
There was no dispute about the sums of money payable, though the team said a condition of the bonus money being paid was that Gilbert would once again ride with Omega Pharma-Lotto in 2012.
He then signed for BMC despite QuickStep offering him €3 million.
And now a labour court in Belgium has agreed with his former employer’s claim that Gilbert breached his contract.
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However, rather than ordering him to return all of the €715,000 in bonuses, the court directed he must pay back €300,000.
The bonuses were to be paid by Marc Coucke’s management company (BCC). Coucke owned the Omega Pharma pharmaceutical company and he initially refused to pay Gilbert.
The rider took a legal action; via a UCI arbitration process and also the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
He won but that case was based on incomplete paperwork, with an option on his remaining at the team for 2012 not included in the documents presented during the initial case.
And now that the full set of documents has been considered by the Labour Court in Ghent, a ruling to repay €300,000 has been handed down.
The matter has gone on so long that Coucke has since sold Omega Pharma and it is now unclear what person or entity Gilbert must repay the money.
In 2010 Gilbert extended his contract to stay with Omega Pharma-Lotto the following year with an option to further extend for 2012.
Details of Gilbert’s salary and bonuses emerged during the court process and have been reported in the Belgian media.
Gilbert best bits, 2006-2016
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