Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s dominant performance at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift was nothing short of spectacular. Fans and audiences could not look away, and ultimately she was crowned the first French woman to win the yellow jersey. Her decisive and punishing attacks in the Alps, particularly on the Col de la Madeleine, were displays of raw power and skill that secured her place in cycling history.

However, despite her beyond-impressive win, much of the conversation has focused not on the brilliance of her riding but rather on the weight she lost in preparation for the race. Ferrand-Prévot openly discussed losing four kilograms (almost nine pounds) between Paris-Roubaix and the Tour de France Femmes as a strategic move aimed at optimizing her power-to-weight ratio for the demanding climbs of the Tour.

Despite professional cycling’s long and entrenched history of eating disorders, she defended her approach, emphasizing that her weight loss was “controlled and intelligent,” and executed with the support of a team nutritionist and chef. She also stressed the importance of achieving her lifetime goal of winning the Tour and doing her job as a professional athlete to the best of her ability, telling the media that she planned to regain some weight after the event.

With utmost respect to Ferrand-Prévot’s professionalism and the choices she made with her support team, this situation reignites a crucial, and often sensitive, discussion within women’s pro cycling: the pressure to be lean and the potential risks associated with aggressive weight loss.

Demi Vollering, a previous winner of Tour de France Femmes who came in second after Ferrand-Prévot in 2025, has notably pushed back against the sport’s weightloss narrative, publicly stating that “losing weight is not the ultimate solution” for performance. She expressed hope that her example would show young girls that being “super skinny” isn’t a prerequisite for winning a race like the Tour.

The reality is that weight loss for elite performance in a demanding sport like pro cycling is a nuanced and complex issue. A higher power-to-weight ratio is undeniably beneficial, especially for climbers.

However, the pursuit of leanness can quickly and easily become a dangerous tightrope walk for female athletes, increasing the risk of low energy availability and a host of harmful effects on health and performance, including hormonal disruptions, bone density loss, and decreased immune system resilience. These effects can and often do have long-lasting consequences. It’s also impossible to ignore the increased risk many professional cyclists face of developing eating disorders.

While Ferrand-Prévot worked with medical professionals during her weight loss and consciously plans to regain weight, the public discussion surrounding her weight loss, even when presented as controlled, inevitably contributes to the broader narrative that winning, particularly in the mountains, requires a certain physique. This can be especially challenging for younger athletes or anyone emulating the pros who may not have access to the same level of professional guidance, education, and support.

Perhaps the conversation should shift from “how much weight did she lose?” to “how can we foster a culture that supports optimal fueling and healthy body images while still striving for peak performance?” Vollering and others are trying to shift this narrative, promoting accounts like @f.e.e.d_powr to break the taboo surrounding the transparent discussion of weight and performance.

It’s vital that the achievements of athletes like Pauline Ferrand-Prévot are celebrated for their incredible talent and athletic achievements. But it’s also just as essential that discussions around weight are framed responsibly using sound information backed by current science while emphasizing the health and diversity of strong, capable bodies within the peloton. We can do both of these things at the same time, and the fundamental health of our sport, and the athletes who make it their livelihood, depends on it.

If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, help and support is available through the National Alliance for Eating Disorders Helpline by calling 1-866-662-1235.