Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s option to retire from a glowing off-road occupation, go away Ineos Grenadiers and return to freeway racing with Visma-Lease a Bike has been one of many essential talked about transfers of the yr.
The reigning mountain bike World and Olympic Champion has indicated {{that a}} driving stress behind the selection is her have to win the Tour de France Femmes by the following chapter of her occupation. The third model of the eight-stage race begins on Monday in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, the place Cyclingnews caught up with Ferrand-Prévot’s soon-to-be teammate Marianne Vos and Visma-Lease supervisor Rutger Tyssen to debate her prospects on the WorldTour.
“It’s unbelievable to have her inside the crew as soon as extra. I’ve been racing alongside along with her [in previous years], and it’s pretty a while prior to now. To begin with, determining that she was coming once more to freeway biking was already thrilling, nevertheless to be subsequent to her inside the crew shall be good,” Vos talked about on the Luxor Theater in Rotterdam on the eve of the event.
“She is a phenomenon inside the sport, and it’s an thrilling journey. It’s one factor giant that she is taking on. After profitable the Olympic gold after which switching once more to freeway biking as soon as extra, I consider we’re all wanting forward to seeing what she goes to do.”
Ferrand-Prévot and Vos have been beforehand teammates inside the former Rabobank squad between 2012 and 2016. The French rider made historic previous whereas there inside the 2014-2015 season on the age of 23, when she grew to change into the first bicycle proprietor to hold world titles inside the three disciplines concurrently. She obtained the elite girls’s freeway race world title in 2014 Ponferrada, the XCO cross-country world title in 2015 in Vallnord, and the cyclo-cross world title in 2015 in Tabor.
Ferrand-Prévot then joined Canyon-SRAM from 2017 by means of the highest of 2020. Nonetheless, she hasn’t raced a full freeway season since 2018, outside of competing on the French Avenue Championships in 2019 and 2021. All through that time, she twice underwent surgical process to cope with iliac artery endofibrosis.
After a worthwhile return to mountain biking, she later acknowledged that her priority was profitable the gold medal inside the mountain bike cross-country event on the Paris Olympic Video video games, which she achieved on July 28 at Élancourt Hill.
Now that the Video video games is over, the attention of the biking world switches to the Tour de France Femmes, the race that from subsequent yr is extra prone to be a spotlight of Ferrand-Prévot’s season.
To this point Vos has been the driving force of outcomes on the French tour for her Visma-Lease a Bike squad. The Dutch rider, who has raced every the editions of the Tour de France Femmes to this point, received right here out firing inside the historic previous making return of the women’s race in 2022, profitable two ranges, carrying the yellow jersey for five ranges, and claiming the inexperienced jersey.
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Requested if she believes Ferrand-Prévot could win the yellow jersey eventually, Vos talked about, “From mountain biking now, it’s a giant change, nevertheless she is conscious of herself, and he or she is conscious of what she is ready to.
“The truth is, she has carried out good points in freeway racing to this point, she won’t be new to this world. The truth is, we’ll see what it brings for her as successfully.”
Vos congratulating Ferrand-Prevot after they’ve been teammates in 2014 (Image credit score rating: Getty Images)
‘She desires time’
Ferrand-Prévot – who will start her three-year contract with Visma-Lease a Bike on January 1, 2025 – isn’t any stranger to stage racing and has expert ample success on the Grand Tour stage. She accomplished second complete, behind Vos, on the 2014 Giro d’Italia Women and sixth complete inside the 2015 model.
Tyssen believes Ferrand-Prévot has what it takes to win a race similar to the Tour de France Femmes, nevertheless she would need time to manage to the requires of teaching notably for stage races as soon as extra on the best stage.
“Her transition from being a full-time mountain biker to being a full-time GC contender desires time. It positively desires time. I have no idea whether or not or not it ought to take one yr or two years or three years. We think about that she’s going to be capable of make the transition into being a excessive contender,” Tyssen talked about.
“Her full mentality and technique to elite sport will ship one factor to the crew. She is conscious of exactly how one can peak and is conscious of exactly what it takes to focus on one goal. That’s one factor that she brings into the crew, not as a tutor, nevertheless as a personality.”
Ferrand-Prévot talked about that choosing Visma-Lease a Bike was an easy selection attributable to how the crew works and since its expert technique appealed to her. Tyssen talked about he wouldn’t know if totally different WorldTour teams provided her a contract, nevertheless he believes Visma-Lease a Bike’s high-performance program gave them the sting over others.
“It wished to be Pauline’s selection, and he or she positively chosen this crew for the effectivity environment that we created. It moreover amplifies that the women’s crew is coming nearer and nearer to the lads’s crew and the way in which by which they technique effectivity. She chosen this crew for that motive, not on account of Marianne is on the crew, nevertheless for the whole plan behind this programme. Nevertheless she is labored as much as race with Marianne as soon as extra, too,” Tyssen talked about.
“To be honest, I always had the angle that ought to you’re employed with us, you’re welcome, nevertheless I’m not going to do any bargaining or negotiating. You choose our programme and we pay value, and that’s what it’s.
“Whenever you really think about that we’re in a position to improve your effectivity, then you definitely’re in the very best place. When you could have any doubts and choose one different crew for numerous causes, then I need you a superb occupation elsewhere. I have no idea if I wanted to battle with totally different teams. I spoke with Pauline last December, launched her our plan, and he or she spoke to others and made her selection based totally on the effectivity plan.”
Ferrand-Prévot will race with Visma-Lease a Bike by means of the highest of 2027 nonetheless it was too rapidly for Tyssen to map out a racing schedule for her first season once more on the freeway in 2025. He believes that she goes to mix into the 15-rider crew successfully.
“She is going to be capable of cope with it,” Tyssen talked about. “She is conscious of what she chosen to do. She is conscious of that she goes from additional of an individual sport to additional of a crew sport. She is aware of it, and that’s exactly part of the selection; she should be aware that she has teammates who will take care of her, nevertheless she should take care of her teammates as successfully.
“It goes every strategies. If she takes care of her teammates, they’ll seemingly take two steps additional to help her. We’ll see, nevertheless if in case you could have a plan, good building, and everybody appears to be aligned with that plan, I don’t see any draw back.”
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