Gazet van Antwerpen reports that Belgian amateur cyclist and top chef Luc Bellings, 59, has been provisionally removed from the 2024 UCI Gravel World Championships after he allegedly committed identity fraud at the Houffa Gravel Fondo world championship qualifying race on 24 August.

It seems Bellings gave a teammate his bib number and timing chip to race for him, which the teammate did. The teammate had a good ride, almost too good. He intentionally slowed down in the final kilometers to avoid finishing on the podium and arousing suspicion, with the yet-to-be named teammate finishing 4th (out of 73) in the Men’s 55-59 category and qualifying for the gravel worlds.

When asked about the incident by Het Laatste Nieuws Bellings said, “That’s not what happened.” Adding, “I do not wish to respond further. I will come out at a later date with the true circumstances of the story.”

Results show Luc Bellings (or maybe someone racing in his place?) also raced at Sea Otter Europe on 21 September in Spain, finishing a distant 15th in his category from a field of 32 and failing to qualify for the UCI Gravel World Championships.

This is not the first time that Bellings, a successful Michelin Star Chef and bike shop owner, has been accused of cheating. In 2014 he failed an anti-doping test for Testosterone, with the results showing he had 10X the normal level for a typical man. When asked about it by Het Laatste News he said, “I’ve been smearing testosterone for years.”

Belgian Cycling confirmed that Bellings will not race at the 2024 UCI Gravel World Championships next week, though it is unclear if he, or his teammate, will be sanctioned by the UCI.

Photo Credit: 2024 UCI Gravel World Championships

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