Rohan Dennis's Instagram and Twitter accounts appear to have disappeared after posts were shared on Instagram suggesting he had had enough of Covid19 lock-down in Spain.
Some of posts on his Instagram account suggested he had ventured out in his car in Spain, which would not be a breach in itself as long as such a journey was being made for essential reasons. However, the messages accompanying the posts were unusual.
A photo taken from a vehicle at the side of the road was posted on the Australian's Instagram account accompanied with the message: "Day 34 - cracked and left the house. #covid19 can suck my ass and so can #quarantine."
Some of his followers replied to the message questioning whether such photos should be shared publicly on the account.
A reply was posted stating: "Or I could show the reality of how shit the situation is and not be one of your beloved drones who show their 'perfect world' as an elite athlete. Which one would you like - real or fake?"
Advertisement
Related News
When another Instagram questioned the wisdom of the posts, a reply stated: "Imagine if everyone lived by your ideal world that we can't speak our mind and show our emotions."
Team Ineos was yet to make any comment at the time of writing and there was no confirmation from them that Dennis had posted the messages and replies on his Instagram account rather than a third party who may have somehow accessed his Instagram account.
It was also not confirmed that Dennis actually broke any of the lock-down rules in Spain, where moving around is restricted but is not completely banned. Being outside, even in a vehicle, is not a breach in itself.
However, the incident will undoubtedly come as an unwelcome distraction for Team Ineos, which signed Dennis after he departed Bahrain Merida in very controversial circumstances.
Dennis, the world TT champion, walked out on his former team on the Tour de France just before the TT stage last year but was signed by Team Ineos after retaining his world crown last September.
Team Ineos has been carefully managing its image during lock down; the team delivering hand sanitiser branded in Ineos livery and Geraint Thomas raising £295,887 for the NHS charities via three 12-hour shifts in Zwift.
The team has also been racing among itself on Zwift - last weekend's race won by Dennis - and inviting its fans to join its stars for Zwift ride-alongs.
Dave Brailsford has also done interviews stressing that public health considerations must come before sport at present, adding unless the Tour de France was run in safe conditions his team would not take part.
Topics
