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Lotto-Dstny CEO speaks out about Caleb Ewan finish controversy

Belgian team is asking for more proof that their sprinter actually lost

Caleb Ewan's controversial photo finish Photo by: Caleb Ewan/Twitter

The Belgian team Lotto-Dstny isn’t quite ready to admit that Caleb Ewan lost to Gerben Thijssen at the Grote Prijs Jean-Pierre Monseré in Belgium on Sunday. The two riders threw their bikes at the end of the 198 km race, in  an extremely tight finish. Initially, TV crews thought that Ewan won and even started to interview him. A few minutes later, officials declared Thijssen to be the winner. But Ewan wasn’t convinced, even taking to Twitter and posting photos of the finish line asking his fans if he had won.

On Tuesday, the CEO of the team, Stephane Heulot spoke to Het Nieuwsblad about the drama. “Now, we are not filing a complaint with the UCI. We just want to see an image of the photo-finish, the photo that was viewed by the competition jury and used to determine the winner,” he said.

Was Caleb Ewan robbed of a victory due to a lousy photo finish camera?

Like many fans, Heulot pointed to the poor quality photo posted online that was used to determine the finish, as well as other complications.

Watch Démare give a master class in bike throwing to win stage 6 of the Giro

“Our team director did not get to see an image of a photo of the finish. Apparently, there was a problem with the computer. I just would like to ask that we can view that photo finish in question. This way we have proof that our rider was rightly placed second.” Heulot added that the matter is also being discussed with the Belgian Cycling Federation as well as the UCI.

“We only want proof that the competition management rightly designated Thijssen as the winner,” Heulot concluded. “We just want clarity.”

You can watch the finish below.