As of 9 am 8th February 2021, rider Philipp Diegner will no longer be part of the Canyon Esports team. This decision has been made during an investigation by ZADA following Race No. 3 of ZRL Premier League. Evidence was brought to light that was previously unknown to Canyon Esports and it's management staff. As per the team's internal protocals, a decision was made to terminate the rider's contract and part ways. Philipp had previously been suspended from race duties while the team and ZADA's investigation was ongoing. At the time of publishing this notice, ZADA and Zwift have made no further announcement other than the disqualification from Race 3.
Canyon Esports had been investigating in good faith whether the reported irregularities had occurred involuntarily during the exporting process. However, before we could conclude that investigation we were presented with additional evidence which undermined the necessity to continue. Following further conversations with the rider and ZADA, the team was left with a hard but simple decision to end the relationship.
Rhys Howell, Team Manager
We are an incredibly close-knit team, so losing a rider is like losing a limb. Personally, I can only descirbe my feelings as heartbroken. However, I did not hesitate for one second to make the necessary decision to terminate our agreement with the rider in question. Our team is more than any single rider alone and we believe firmly in transparency and a clean sport. There can be no deviations from that belief. Our sport relies on trust and a team like ours is founded upon it. We will now look at how we can avoid such situations in the future and I have reiterated to all our senior and development riders that they can and should always come to me first if they are struggling. I hope this episode will be but a lone footnote in the exciting story of our team.