Alpecin Deceuninck sprinter Jasper Philipsen, dominating during the sprint stages of the Tour de France 2023 with 4 stage victories out of the 8 possible, is the target of death threats on social networks. His companion, Melanie Peetermans, admitted to the Flemish media Sporza that the 25-year-old runner’s contentious sprints and other unfair racing acts have earned him threats.
“People make up their minds about him based on a 10-second fragment on TV. They forget that runners have to make quick decisions during the sprint,” she explains. “A lot of people underestimate the mental influence of this. I wonder why people send these messages, they don’t even know him. Many people underestimate the mental influence of this, Peetermans added. I wonder why people are sending these messages, they don’t even know him,” she lamented.
Jasper Philipsen is part of the Belgian selection for the road cycling world championships, on August 6 in Scotland.
