Lowe’s advisor rebuts Slipstream claims of blackmail
- By Neal Rogers
- Published Jan. 27, 2011
- Updated Jan. 28, 2011 at 9:49 PM EDT
Martin Hardie, the Deakin University law lecturer representing former Garmin rider Trent Lowe, is rejecting claims made by Slipstream Sports that Lowe demanded €500,000 or he would go public with his 2009 visit to a clinic run by former U.S. Postal Service doctor Luis del Moral.
In the statement Hardie wrote: “We note the material in the press regarding Trent Lowe. We note that this material is factually inaccurate and we reject the allegations made. We will make a further statement after we have had an opportunity to discuss these matters further with Slipstream Sports. We look forward to resolving these issues as soon as possible without any further damage being done to cycling and people’s careers and reputations.”
The team issued a statement Tuesday detailing its side of the events, explaining that it was “sharing all of this information in the interest of transparency.”
Slipstream CEO Jonathan Vaughters said he had nothing to add to the team’s side of the story.
“I think we’ve said all we’ve can say,” Vaughters said, adding that he has not been able to speak with Lowe for several weeks, instead only hearing back from Hardie.
Over the weekend Slipstream dismissed team director Matt White for referring Lowe to del Moral, an unauthorized doctor, in what Vaughters called a breach of protocol.
VeloNews will continue to monitor this story as it develops.
FILED UNDER: News / Road TAGS: Garmin-Cervelo / Jonathan Vaughters / Trent Lowe
Neal Rogers
An interest in all things rock 'n' roll led Neal into music journalism while attending UC Santa Cruz. After several post-grad years spent waiting tables, surfing and mountain biking, Neal moved to San Francisco, working stints as a bike messenger and at a software start-up. He moved to Colorado in 2001, taking an editorial internship at VeloNews. He never left, and is now Velo's editor in chief. When not traveling the world covering races, Neal can be found riding his bike, skiing, cooking, or attending a concert. Follow him on Twitter at @nealrogers.