Bike maintenance brand apologises to Sir Chris Hoy and removes video linking cycling legend’s cancer diagnosis to rival chain lube after legal action threatened

The bike maintenance brand which attracted widespread criticism last weekend after it uploaded a video to its social media accounts, linking Sir Chris Hoy’s terminal cancer diagnosis to his use of rival company Muc-Off’s chain lube, has now removed the posts and apologised, after the six-time Olympic champion’s representatives threatened legal action.

In emails seen by road.cc on Thursday, TGI Sport, the management agency which represents Hoy, contacted Green Oil owner Simon Nash requesting that the video – which asked if Hoy’s cancer diagnosis was caused by “PTFE bike lubricant exposure” – be removed with immediate effect.

TGI Sport gave Nash until 3pm on Thursday 16 January to remove what they described as the “distressing” clip, which appeared on Green Oil’s Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube pages last weekend.

The posts, which TGI Sport confirmed Hoy was personally aware of, were not taken down by that time, prompting the agency to initiative legal proceedings against the UK-based bike maintenance company.

However, later that evening, after road.cc contacted Green Oil and received no reply, the video was finally deleted from the brand’s social media channels.

road.cc understands that the videos were taken down after TGI Sport’s legal team spoke to Nash in a phone call, during which the Green Oil owner reportedly apologised to Hoy and his representatives.

A spokesperson for TGI Sport also confirmed that since all the posts have been removed, they now “consider the matter closed”.

> Sir Chris Hoy’s management launches legal action against bike maintenance brand over “distressing” video linking cancer diagnosis to use of rival company’s chain lube

In a statement sent to road.cc, Nash denied that Green Oil was given a 3pm deadline to remove the videos, but confirmed he had apologised for “any distress caused” and insisted that he had always intended to delete the clips if Hoy objected.

Nash also told us that he kept the video up following the vociferous backlash from the cycling community because he felt it was the “right thing to do”, and insisted that he “genuinely didn’t think [Hoy] would mind at all”.

However, a video apology posted on Instagram on Friday evening also saw Nash admit that “what was deemed the morally right thing to do, with hindsight, was not” in reference to the original post.

“So basically: I had a call about 16:30 [on Thursday] from a chap at Sir Chris Hoy’s agency – he requested the video be taken down,” the Green Oil founder told us.

“I apologised for any distress if it had caused that, and the truth, that I genuinely didn’t think he would mind at all – we all want a world with less cancer, so investigating potential causes I thought would be something he would support. I lost a friend to cancer last year, also in his 30s, so I appreciate the pain.

“Within the hour I personally took down the video from Instagram. And by the end of play that day, about 18:30, we took the videos off all other platforms.

“It was soon after this I was sent the road.cc article with this 3pm deadline. No one had actually communicated this, nor what the legal basis was. 16:30 was the first time we had been contacted.

“In any case, our policy was always to take the video down if there was any objection at all from Sir Chris Hoy or his people.”

 

 

 

 

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He continued: “Our goal is to have a greener planet, free of cancer and its causes. It is ironic that the bike industry has lubricant companies that have and continue to pollute our world with PFAS chemicals.

“There will be a lot more on this, and we support the European Union’s plan to ban PTFE soon – and it’s great if Muc-Off really does plan to phase out this vile chemical, which causes cancer in its production. We made a video. Other brands make carcinogens (through their supply chain).

“It was kept up as it felt like the right thing to do so spread a message, to help prevent cancer and promote a greener world.

“No harm to anyone was intended. I’ve fought through Green Oil for a greener world from the beginning and we’re pleased to have stopped a lot of PTFE pollution, and plastic pollution through our work here in Earth.”

Posted last weekend and universally condemned by the cycling community, the voiceover to Green Oil’s original controversial two-minute video said Hoy “was part of Team Sky” during his career, who were “sponsored by the company Muc-Off”, a rival bicycle maintenance products brand.

The video then claimed Muc-Off “manufactured lubricants containing PTFE” – a synthetic polymer more commonly known by the brand name Teflon and used to coat non-stick cookware – and that “there is a link between PTFE production and cancer”.

It finished by asking, “What do you think? Is there a link here or not?” before transitioning to an advert promoting Green Oil’s products, including its chain lube.

Green Oil markets itself as “the world’s greenest bicycle maintenance products” brand and offers a range of chain lubes and cleaning products, some of which have received positive reviews on road.cc.

But they have been on the receiving end of a widespread and furious backlash from the cycling community over the past week, as cyclists united to condemn the “really poor taste” video and accuse the company of an “utterly scummy way to approach marketing”.

And along with the threat of legal action from Hoy’s representatives, on Monday Muc-Off also told road.cc that it was “in the process of reviewing our options regarding these false allegations” and expressed shock and sadness that Hoy had been “dragged into such squalid social media activity when he has other more important challenges right now”.

A spokesperson told us: “We are shocked and saddened that Chris Hoy has been dragged into such squalid social media activity when he has other more important challenges right now.

“There are comments about our brand that are simply wrong. To be clear, we do not use PTFE in any of our current product range as we took a decision many years ago to become 100 per cent PTFE free due to environmental concerns. We are in the process of reviewing our options regarding these false allegations.”

Soon after posting the video, however, Green Oil replied to numerous comments appearing to double down its messaging. In one reply, the brand said “the idea was to simply raise the question – and awareness”.

Without evidence to support the statement, another reply on the company’s Instagram page said: “A fit healthy man like Sir Chris Hoy shouldn't be getting cancer – it was likely caused by a carcinogen like PFOA.

“Will get in touch with him next week to see what he thinks, likely he would like people thinking about this to stop future victims of cancer don’t you think?”

road.cc contacted Green Oil at the time for comment and received a lengthy reply in which many of the same claims were repeated, although there was an acknowledgement the video and posts were “misjudged”.

While the video directly linking Hoy’s cancer diagnosis to PTFE has been removed, another video on Green Oil’s YouTube account, posted on Monday, continues to claim that Muc-Off products containing PTFE are still being sold.

Hoy was diagnosed with cancer in 2023 and told the public of the news in February 2024. In October, he announced that the diagnosis is terminal and he has two to four years to live, adding that he is “feeling fit, strong and positive, and overwhelmed by all the love and support shown”.

> "The idea is to create a positive out of a negative": Cancer My Arse's Kev Griffiths on living with stage four cancer, Sir Chris Hoy, and why he's encouraging everyone to ride out of the saddle for charity

The NHS joined the cycling community and wider public in praising Hoy’s bravery, the 11-time world champion sprinter’s terminal cancer revelation prompting a near sevenfold increase in prostate cancer advice searches.

“Thanks to his bravery, we have seen a significant spike in people accessing vital information on our website about the signs and symptoms of cancer,” NHS England's National Clinical Director for Cancer Professor, Peter Johnson, said in a statement.

“One in two people will develop some form of cancer in their lifetime and detecting the disease early gives the best chance of successful treatment.”

Responding to the figures released by the NHS, Hoy said the “massive increase” in men seeking advice has been a “huge comfort” to him and his family.

Hoy's website, with information on an upcoming memoir about his life since the diagnosis, can be found here. For advice on spotting symptoms of prostate cancer, you can visit this page on the NHS England website.