Daily photo - 28: Record number of women cyclocross racers at Milton Keynes

While the world was watching the women compete in Yorkshire at the World Road Race Championships, another big women's cycling event was taking place at Campbell Park, Milton Keynes. Velobants cycling club organised a cyclocross race, CX in the City 2 which attracted a record 165 women racers. This is something that has never been seen before in any race, particularly as it wasn't a national level event, but a round of the local Central Cyclocross League.

Photo: Keith Perry

When last year's event, CX in the City 1, took place on the course from the 2014 UCI World Cup a large field. This year the organisers set an ambitious target to get 100 women to the start line. Fran Whyte and her club mates at Velobants CC did a lot of work to promote the event, notably with the help of 10-time national cyclocross champion Helen Wyman. A lot of women on the Velovixen women's chat group who were unfamiliar with cyclocross decided to have a go once the concept was explained to them. That helped to swell the numbers to a massive 165.

It was quite a momentous occasion, though sadly I wasn't able to race it because I was doing work around the World Road Race Championships. It sounds like everyone had a great time and it was a massive achievement for Velobants and the wider women's cycling community.


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52 Cycling Voices - 19: Helen Wyman

52 Cycling Voices - 19: Helen Wyman

I have known Helen Wyman for a good few years and have seen her develop from being a good national level racer to be an international elite, mixing it with the best cyclocross racers in the world. She and husband Stefan have been well known personalities in the world of cycle racing, often seen at events around the UK, as well as across Europe. I managed to catch up with Helen while at The Wyman Review, an event hosted by one of her sponsors Look Mum No Hands.

That evening Helen talked about the importance of helping the future generation of women cyclocross riders, particularly the under-23s. With that in mind, she is spearheading a crowdfunding initiative, the Helen 100 to pay the entries for 100 under-23 women riders to enter the National Cyclocross Championships next year, and engage them in the sport through other activities.


Helen Wyman, aged 36

From: St Albans, Hertfordshire

Lives: Rennes-les-Bains, nr Carcassonne, France

Occupation: Cyclocross athlete and coach

When I was a kid, I wanted to be a doctor when I grew up, but then I didn’t get the grades, so then I thought, "oh I’ll become a physiotherapist", and I studied for a degree in physiotherapy from the University of Hertfordshire. I started bike racing from the age of 14 and continued while studying at university, and I was always good at it.

My brother used to race when I was a kid, and that’s why I started racing - because I wanted to beat him! He now runs a bike shop in Sheringham, Norfolk, called Black Bikes. My family have always been into cycling. My dad used to race when he was young, but only time trials. Then he started racing again on the grass track when I was 14. These days they still ride, but they don't race. My parents even cycled from Lands End to John ‘o Groats for their 50th birthdays. My mum still rides, though now she has an electric bike. Stef even wants to get one too so that he can ride with me!

It was when I won a National Trophy race in the UK in 2004 that Stef suggested that I become a full-time racer. At the same time British Cycling needed people for their Great Britain road team that summer. They needed six riders at every race so that the Olympic development riders could put in some good training. 

I happened to be in the right place at the right time, and so I rode with the team. I went from doing 60-mile road races to doing a 3-day stage race, a 10-day stage race, and some of the biggest women's cycle races in the world, racing distances I never even dreamed I could ride. So off the back of that I learned how much my body could take. 

When I came back to cyclocross after that summer I came 6th or 7th in every world cup race, and from that point I thought, "right well I know I can do this." It was that opportunity to ride with the GB road team that taught me what I could and couldn’t do. It was like a switch flicked and cycle racing was something that I knew I could achieve in.

I don't think I was more privileged than anyone else. I just think I had the opportunity. I had the talent, and I could do the training. Another rider could have done what I did and they may have died and cracked and not actually ridden anyway, so they wouldn’t have got the benefits. I don’t think there’s such a thing as talent alone or training alone that makes you a good bike rider, but a combination of many things. Even if you have just an inkling of talent you can take it an incredibly long way - it just takes opportunity, determination, dedication, desire, access, and time.

There have been points when I didn't know where money for my rent would come from, but I still carried on because I believed I would get there in the end. I had set off from the UK in a donated £100-Peugeot 205 to go and live in Belgium and start this biking adventure in cyclocross, and I was very determined! 

We’ve grown into a society that wants instant success. Instant appreciation like Instagram. You judge yourself on how many "likes" you get. But Stef’s always said that there are people in the world, that if you put £5 in front of them on a table and then £10 on the other side of the table, they will take the £5 because they can't be bothered to lean across and get the £10. And sometimes in cycling you have to leave the £5 and work out how to get the £10, and that’s what makes determined people.

Now I own my house in the South of France, I have a good income, a nice life, a good job, and I win bike races. These days there is more money in the sport than when I first started, so there is way more opportunity. 

This season I’ve probably doubled my prize money from any other year just because in C1 races the prize money for women is equal to the men's, and every race in Belgium is a C1. So I have made more money than ever before, because of the prize money. 

If the climate was the same in 2004 as it was in the 2017/18 season, then for the same level I was achieving in 2004 I would have reached a comfortable financial position sooner than it has taken me.  
So I think there is more monetary opportunity for good riders, but you have to get good enough to take that, and getting good enough is the hardest part!

I’m not actually money motivated. I know it drives life and you need money to exist, but for me it didn’t matter at the time that the money wasn’t what it is now. It was the fact that I could actually go out and achieve something for myself.

I am doing some crowdfunding, the Helen 100, in order to pay the entry fees for 100 under-23 women to take part in the National Cyclocross Championships in 2019. The plan is to pay their entry fee, but now that I have raised the £2,500 needed to do this the next phase is to actually engage with those riders. 

So the aim is actually to try and create a legacy by going out and doing cross clinics in England, or providing things like jet washes they can use during races - just for those under-23 women so that they might actually get inspired in some way to stay in the sport.

It is hard growing up nowadays with social media and all those things. You are getting judged all the time. So it is important for young women to be in an environment which gives them confidence, which teaches them how to appreciate what they have, how to set goals, how to achieve things independently, because ultimately it is only you that pedals that bike.

And if you gain confidence in that way you can take that into later life and you can use it in business, in work, in whatever you choose to do afterwards.


I am focusing on the under-23 women because I get the impression that there are huge differences between the riders racing in that category and there are high drop-out rates from the sport. The very best riders like World under-23 cyclocross champion Evie Richards are supported by British Cycling, and then there’s a massive gap to the next riders, and those ridees aren’t supported by anyone.

As part of the Helen 100 crowdfunding initiative, for every £10 you donate you get a free entry into a prize draw. There are various prizes on offer, like a weekend stay in a bed & breakfast in Wales, a signed jersey, hats, socks, T-shirts, squeezy bottles, and signed race numbers. 

One of my best memories in my career was the World Cup race that was held in Milton Keynes in 2014. That was amazing! As a British rider it was just ridiculous. Everyone who went there really enjoyed it. The Milton Keynes World Cup kind of became this urban legend, because they never did it again. And they had more people spectating that than they did at Koksijde [sand dune] World Cup that year!

Helen racing at Milton Keynes World Cup (photo: Paul Burgoine)

Milton Keynes was huge, the racing was fantastic, the course was fantastic, and the riders loved it. As a British rider it was epic! 

My ears were still ringing three days later, and that inspired me to write an open letter to future cyclocross racers. It was a letter to say other people could feel the same, and experience the same thing as me if they wanted to. 

It's up on my website, and every two or three months someone retweets it! And I’m like "wow this was four years ago!" But even though it was a few years ago when I wrote the letter I think what I wrote still holds true today. 

The 2017/18 season was really good, and I’m really happy with how it went. I won seven races, and the National Championships, that’s cool. I got a podium place in World Cups, that’s cool. So it's been good.

Now I am going on holiday to Mexico, I'll have a rest, and then restart my training. Everything I do is for 'cross. In the summer I do a bit of road racing, some mountain biking though not racing. Plus I do running and core training. I make sure I ride my 'cross bike once a week throughout the summer.

My permanent home now is in the South of France, below Carcassonne, near the Pyrenees. It’s amazing. The roads are stunning and the riding is deathly quiet. You can go out for four hours and not see a single car. And when you see a car, you think, "Whoa where did that come from? Oh, I’m on a road!" The weather’s great, it’s just perfect.

I spent 10 years living in Belgium, but now we just spend a few weeks at a time there over the winter, go back home for a while and then return to Belgium. I would need lots of Vitamin D tablets if I had to stay in Belgium for more than a month!

Things were quite difficult for me during the 2016/17 season. Because of the nasty crash I had during the European Championships in which I broke my collarbone, from 13th October 2016 to 16th January 2017 I didn't race. 

Coming back from injury was tough physically and emotionally. When I went to have the dressing on my shoulder removed I really fell apart, thinking my arm would drop off. At times I questioned myself. But Stef was there for me emotionally. I was 35 at the time – an age where a lot of people are retiring. But at no point did I think of stopping, and that was the driver that kept me going. I told myself there was no way I would want to end my career on a season like that. There’s no way I could do that so I had to come back. 

After two or three weeks back on the bike I did the Hoogstraten Superprestige race and came 2nd, and I raced in the World Championships. And I think that motivated me for the rest of this year. That showed that I am still there, that I am still capable and so I went out and put in a big summer’s training and came back stronger. I still think I can get stronger and better again. So that’s really exciting and I’m not looking at retiring at any point soon.

In 2014 I came 3rd in the World Championships. I thought that this year the course would go my way again, but I actually peaked at the Nationals, which meant I had peaked too soon. Because I didn’t even get to race the Nationals last year I had really really wanted to win it this year, and that was one of my biggest goals. So maybe that took the edge off my strength for the Worlds, and I didn’t have the same level that I could have had on the day. So the Worlds will be my target for next year. They will be in Bogense, Denmark. It was where a World Cup was held this year, and I placed 2nd. 

If I can be the fittest I can possibly be at the Worlds on that day and everything works out then there is no reason why I can’t get a really good result.

As well as placing 3rd at the World Cyclocross Championships in the 2013/14 season I also won the European Championships. It was the muddiest race I have ever done. It was held in Mlada Boleslav, Czech Republic. After the pre-ride I had to go back to the campervan and shower before the race, it was that muddy. I couldn’t just change my clothes, I had to shower right before the race! That was pretty funny. I had never had to do that before, and I have never done it since in any race. The race was epic, and I won it by a minute and a half. It was so muddy it was ridiculous. 

Everyone needs a Stef! If you go to the discount section of the DIY store, near the back, next to the power tools you’ll find a whole selection of Stefs, but I can't guarantee that they will still be there when you get there! 

Seriously, we met at a bike race, and he’s been an integral part of my life in many ways. He sometimes pushes me more than I push myself, and other times we work really well together. 

He is as invested in my career as I am and that is a really good thing to have because it means I can entirely trust everything he says. He wants the best for me because when I achieve he achieves, so it’s a very trusting, working relationship. 

Sometimes it's tough, like when I have a bad day at a race and he has to tell me what I did wrong and I’m not accepting of it, it gets rough. But at that point I have to say this is my coach talking and not my husband. We don’t always get it right, but I think we have found a pretty good balance as to how to make it work.

And everything outside of bike riding and racing is awesome!

I don’t know where I get my determination to race from. I just love riding a bike because it gives me freedom. Even if I didn’t race I would still ride a bike and I would love it.



Donations can be made to The Helen 100 crowdfunding page until 4th March 2018.

Website: www.helenwyman.com
Twitter: @CXHelen
Facebook:@HelenWymanCX
Instagram: @cxhelen
Vimeo: Helen Wyman


Other Cycling Voices
Rochelle Gilmore

Rebecca Charlton

Giorgia Bronzini

Tracy Moseley

Emily Chappell

Grace and Lucy Garner

Hannah Bussey

Maria David

10 soundbites from.....the Aviva Women's Tour

So the Women's Tour has been and gone. I wasn't able to follow the first edition of the race last year, but I managed to follow the different stages this year. Trying to second guess how the race would unfold each day, and who would be the overall winner was pretty exciting, and there was some exciting racing throughout the week. This has become a great event on the women's pro cycling calendar. I caught up with some of the riders and they were very positive about how their week had been.


Stefan Wyman (Director Sportive, Matrix Pro Cycling): "We had a few goals in the race and to be in the feature break was one of them, and to be on the podium either with a stage or a jersey was the key goal for us, so we did it. Elinor [Barker] is an unsung hero, and it is really difficult to transition from the track to the road so it was nice that she had the best British rider jersey for a time. It wasn’t all Laura [Trott] and it took the pressure off Laura. I think they did really well as a team so they should be really happy."



Dame Sarah Storey: "The first four stages were very samey, but the last stage was a lot more interesting. We need to get to a point where we don’t have five bunch sprints. It’s quite exciting potentially for watching, but as riders it’s nice to have another opportunity to put other types of riders up to win a stage. I would have liked to have seen long hilly climbs. They are the races I tend to target. The support we got from the side of the road was absolutely phenomenal, so to the people who supported us, I can’t thank them enough."


Lisa Brennauer (Yellow Jersey): "This is the biggest victory of my career so far. I have really enjoyed the racing here in the UK and it was great to see so many crowds when we were racing."


Melissa Hoskins (Queen of the Mountains): "I came into the QOM competition for a bit of fun and something for the team to do, but then I decided to do everything I could to defend it. It was something unexpected, even for myself. It’s been brilliant racing in England. The crowds have been fantastic.  I was overwhelmed with how many people were so interested in what we are doing. We don’t get that anywhere else in Europe. It’s a nice change to feel important for what you are doing, and inspiring young kids to do cycling."


Helen Wyman: "I have found the week fun, with really safe riding. There’s not been very many crashes. This is fantastic training for the 'cross season. You need to be as fit as you can be to train hard for 'cross. These are just really great base miles."   


Hannah Barnes (Best British Rider/Stage 5 winner): "In America we are one of the biggest teams, but here we are one of the small teams so we wanted to get stuck in and not be afraid to show our face. I’ve been focussing on my climbing this winter and my coach Jenny Gretton has helped me improve a lot this year. I always made sure I was in a good position when going into the bottom of the climb and I was on the right side of the split. In the last stage I just stayed near the front and hoped for it to come down to a sprint. I love following Alexis’s [Ryan] wheel during the race. She’s really nice to follow. I call her the Alexis bubble! The roads are wider in the States. So in terms of positioning you get a bit lazy because you know that in two seconds you can be at the front, whereas here it can take you an hour to get to the front, and less than a minute to drop to the back!"



Rachel Heal (Director Sportive, UnitedHealthcare Procycling): "With Hannah being at home and with the race being local to her she has had a lot of other pressures to deal with so the last couple of days we tried to kind of relax Hannah so she could be able to just focus on bike racing. Hannah has been sprinting really well all week and she had got top 5 a few times so we knew that she was fast enough
to get a win. To put it all together, and to be in the right place and to sprint at the right time, is just fantastic, especially on the last day." 



Sue Barnes (Hannah Barnes's mum): "It was so close, and I didn’t realise Hannah had won until they said so on the tannoy, and I was just jumping up and down. I am very proud of her right now. I work in a stationery shop – Colemans in Arundel. I did a Hannah window in the shop. It’s gone a bit viral on Twitter and the takings have gone up massively this week! I am keeping it there until the end of the National Championships where my other daughter, Alice will be racing too. We all do a bit of cycling but the girls' granddad was a very good time triallist in his day so they must get that from him as well. I have been to all the stages, and Hannah's gran, who is 87,
has been to three of the stages with me. We were at the start, the finish and lots of different parts of he course. It has meant a lot to Hannah to have her family there."


Will Mangar (Race doctor): "I have felt the racing has been faster this year and more flowing and more seamless. There's been a palpable shift in quality and skill level with the ladies' riding this year. It was difficult last year, with the rain. We had so many girls spinning off and there was lots and lots of road rash, This year everyone's been good. What I've noticed is there's less injuries but to be honest, these girls are tough. They are really made of strong stuff and it takes a lot for them to not want to get back on the bike."





Marianne Vos: "The crowd support has been fantastic! It's really cool to see all the schoolkids around and coming out of their schools, supporting, cheering for the riders and cheering for the Tour. You really feel that cycling is really popular in Britain."




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Milton Keynes goes cross crazy!



The tough run up

So Milton Keynes World Cup was a success. It was a great day out. The sun even shone and there were loads of cycling bods that I bumped into on the day. Around 10,000 people turned out for the event - which is amazing. That has never happened at all in the UK - not even when cyclo cross World Championships were held in Roundhay Park, Leeds over 20 years ago.

It was just great to be able to walk around the different team camper vans and talk to the elite riders. They all seemed so amenable and friendly.

Helen Wyman loved it

For me, the highpoint was the women's race. I have to say it was a really momentous occasion standing on the long run-up watching women I knew battling it out against the world's elite. It seemed quite surreal.

I have written a few accounts of the event for Sportsister and for Cycling Weekly on-line and in the magazine, but I would just like to share other thoughts.

The course looked pretty mean as well. People described it as a more challenging World Cup course - more like a World Championship course. It's only when you see it for real that you get a full perspective of just how tough these courses are, how steep the hills are, and how muddy it can get. Even just walking around the course was challenging at times - I was worried I would slip and fall on the bankings!

The following day the National Trophy race was held on the same course, which meant us mortals could have a go on it. I had hummed and haa'ed about whether or not to enter it - then 5 minutes before the deadline a couple of weeks before I started my on-line entry. I typed in personal details, then I proceeded to the payment page and typed in those details. Suddenly I got a message saying "payment unsuccessful" - I was 30 seconds passed the midnight deadline and the system had rejected my entry. I don't think that was a bad thing!

As a spectator to the race last Saturday, judging by the looks on the faces of the junior men, who looked at times like they were going to cry, and even some of the women who looked exhausted going round, it was a good job I spared myself the humiliation and also the potential waste of £25 and the cost of a night in a hotel. I am not sure I would have got in even one lap before being pulled out of the race!

I have lots of quotes from riders that have not been used in my write-ups so I will put them out in future posts.


An exciting finale to a great race to the women's race

In the mean time what I have seen, which looks fun though is a clip of the race from Katie Compton's on-bike camera. She narrowly missed out on winning when Belgium's Sanne Cant pipped her on the line. Still, I think she did very well and was very brave to carry a camera on her bike in those slippery conditions!

(Photo: Bart Hazen)

 

It's here - World Cup Cyclo Cross comes to England!

It's not just me and my mates who think cyclo cross is in the UK is on the up. The world's governing cycling body recognises it too - so much so that they have agreed to hold one round of the World Cup Cyclo cross series in Milton Keynes. And the race is tomorrow. This is the first time that the UK is hosting a world cup.

Yes, as we speak all the great and the good of cyclo cross are alighting at Milton Keynes Central or leaving junction 14 of the M1 motorway to make their way to their hotels and reccie the course.

It's probably a big deal for them, because the top cyclo crossers generally race in Belgium, Holland and maybe a little bit in Northern France. Most of them are Belgian or Dutch so for them it is a hop, skip and a jump (with bikes slung over their shoulders) to get to a race! It is certainly a big deal for us to be welcoming them!

This will be the only round of the series that is taking place outside of the Belgian/Dutch heartland. So I, and thousands of others will toddle over there to see the pros show us how it's done (or maybe how it isn't done) if they struggle on an apparently very technical course based around a big hill with steps and hurdles.
Hopefully I'll be able to get a few words with the riders for Cycling Weekly and Sportsister magazines.

Nikki Harris (by Bart Hazen)

As it's a home event there will be a strong British contingent. Look out for Nikki Harris and Helen Wyman, who have realistic chances of getting on the podium. Then there is Gabby Durrin, who has been very consistent over the years. The battle will be between them and overseas riders such as Katie Compton from the US, Sanne Cant from Belgium, Sophie de Boer from Holland and a few other women from the Czech Republic and France. 

Helen Wyman (by Bart Hazen)

In the men's race our best rider is Ian Field, though the fight for the podium will likely be between Lars van der Haar, Kevin Pauwels, and a number of others from Belgium and Holland. There's likely to be a huge crowd around the legend that is Sven Nys from Belgium. Apparently he gets a similar reception to David Beckham when he is at home!

Yes, cyclo cross is to Belgians what football is to Brits! There will be loud crowds with various chants, and supporters' clubs for specific riders. That all sounds a strange concept to me, but I look forward to seeing it and maybe even getting involved in the fun.

For anyone going along to the race tomorrow at Campbell Park, Milton Keynes you can just turn up and buy a ticket. Take some wellies or sturdy shoes, wrap up warm (though the weather is not forecast to be too cold) and have something that makes lots of noise to support the riders - a cowbell, whistle, a trumpet, even a vuvuzela. The riders will appreciate it! More tips in my next post.

My moment of the week - 3

Another step towards equal pay

News from Twenty20 Cycling

Milestone: Koppenbergcross is the first European cyclocross to give equal prize money, powered by Twenty20 Cycling.

The Koppenbergcross in Oudenaarde sets a new milestone in the history of cyclocross. In cooperation with the American company Twenty20 Cycling we are the first European cyclocross to provide equal prize money for men elite and women. So far there was a gap of over five thousand euros between the prize scales for men and women in first category races, such as the Koppenbergcross. A gap that the Sint-Pietersvrienden, organizers of the Koppenbergcross, now decided to close.

 

The winner of the GP Twenty20 Cycling (the new name of our women’s race) on Saturday November 1st 2014 is no longer rewarded by 350 euros but by 1667. Exactly the same as the next winner of our GP Willy Naessens for men elite. The same counts for all riders further down the results of our men and women’s race. A clear signal with which we hope to help the current growth of the Koppenbergcross and women’s cyclocross. So far, the world championships were the only cyclocross races on European soil to give equal prize money.

The British rider Helen Wyman – European champion cyclocross, member of the cyclocross committee of the international cycling federation, triple winner of our race and resident of Oudenaarde – is obviously happy with this step.

 

"In my eyes, this is a huge step. It is a very significant moment for women's cycling. This allows women to make one step up the ladder towards equality. I spend a lot of my free time trying to advance women’s cyclocross and I hope this will lead to a chain reaction of races who do the same, as I know the support is there from sponsors, supporters and riders. To be a part of this development for the sport is fantastic for me.”

“For the Koppenbergcross to be the first race in Europe to do this is very special. I love the Koppenbergcross, to me it is the biggest race outside of the World Championships. It is legendary. To have an American sponsor back the race shows how significant it is around the world. I can't thank Twenty20 Cycling enough on behalf of all of the racers that take part next season. I'm certainly already looking forward to the GP Twenty20 Cycling and hope to collect another cobble stone in 2014.”

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I am very pleased to hear such positive news for women's cycle racing, especially in a world where the gap in prize money between the genders is shameful.

 

The winner of the 2013 Tour de France won 450,000 euros. The winner of the women's equivalent race in 2013, the Giro Rosa, won 460 euros! Marianne Vos, one of the greatest female cyclists, who has World Championship titles not just in cyclo cross but also in road racing and track cycling, plus Olympic titles can earn up to 80,000 euros per year. That is a decent salary, but compare that to the 2 million euros of Bradley Wiggins!

 

Furthermore professional male cyclists in a ProTour team are guaranteed a minimum salary of 30,000 euros per year. Women racers in equivalent level teams, on the other hand receive no minimum salary, with some only earning just 6,000 euros per annum, and many having day jobs in parallel to their cycle racing.

I understand that lobbying is constantly taking place, not least by the women racers themselves, and  the world cycling governing body, the UCI is (supposedly) looking into it. However, the wheels of change are turning very slowly.

 

It is good to hear this positive news and I hope it is the start of a turnaround in attitudes to prize money for women in sport.

My moment of the week - 2

A few good women!

I recently did an email interview with Helen Wyman for Sportsister online magazine ahead of the World Cyclo cross Championships. I got a real sense from her answers that she was really looking forward to racing in Hoogerheide (the Netherlands) and she was raring to go. So it was really great news to learn that she got a bronze medal at the championships.

A lot of noise had been made about the likes of Marianne Vos, Nikki Harris and Katie Compton, so it was always going to be a little tight gauging who would complete the podium. In the end Vos rode to a seventh championship victory, followed by Eva Lechner of Italy, and Helen finished ahead of Nikki Harris and Katie Compton for third place.

That's Helen's first ever podium finish in a World Championship race. I am so pleased for her. I have alot of admiration for sportstars like Helen who plug away year in, year out, often without much recognition in the media, but stay highly motivated nonetheless. That gives us all hope that we too can live the dream if we perservere.

So once again Marianne Vos is World Cyclo cross Champion - as well as being World Road Race Champion, World Track Cycling Champion and London 2012 Olympic Road Race Champion. This woman is unstoppable!

I must admit that the day we all crowded round the big screen on that rainy August afternoon at Box Hill cheering for Lizzie Armitstead to get a gold medal for team GB, I secretly didn't mind that she was beaten to the line by this superwoman from the Netherlands.

We have seen her really turn herself inside out to win races across various cycling disciplines and an Olympic road race title was missing from her palmares. So I didn't feel too bad about Armitstead being pipped by a woman who was making history. Marianne Vos is a massive inspiration for women's cycling and I look forward to seeing her do even greater things.

Saying that, she may now get the chance to shine now that it has been announced that there will be a UCI women's race in Paris on the final day of the Tour de France. Following tireless work by the Le Tour Entier (LTE) campaign which involved the likes of Kathryn Bertine, Chrissie Wellington, Emma Pooley, and Vos herself,  to have a parallel women's Tour de France, Amaury Sports Organisation has given the go-ahead for a women's one-day race.

 

The race will take place on the last day of the Tour, right on the Champs Elysees, where the all eyes of the world will be focused. There's no better platform to showcase women's cycle racing!

I think that's probably the best we could hope for at this stage. A 3-week long race around France, along with all the associated logistics is not something that can be done overnight. There would also be important questions over how this would fit into a the women's road racing calendar, given the various other racing commitments that women have at that time of the year.
Having said that, it would be great to see the return to the calendar of short stage races like the Grande Boucle Feminine and the Tour de L'Aude, as well as a women's Tour of Italy that is not beset with sponsorship issues.

For now, a women's cycle race in association with the world's most famous cycling event, held in Paris is a step in the right direction, and that is cause for celebration.
I really appreciate the work done by these women to raise the profile of our sport. I hope this can lead to more positive things for women's cycling, and women's sport in general.