{"id":320354,"date":"2025-08-05T17:24:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-05T17:24:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/320354\/"},"modified":"2025-08-05T17:24:18","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T17:24:18","slug":"i-dont-want-to-be-skin-and-bones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/320354\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I don\u2019t want to be skin and bones\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot admitted in her winner’s post-race press conference that her preparation for the\u00a0Tour de France Femmes<\/a> avec Zwift had been \u2018so hard\u2019 that she wasn\u2019t sure if she would ever do it again. There had been weeks at altitude, the time spent away from friends and family, the razor-sharp focus it takes to achieve a goal like this. One crucial part of trying to win a Grand Tour is getting down to race weight. Being a professional cyclist unavoidably comes with conversations surrounding watts per kilogram and striking the fine balance between being light without losing power.<\/p>\n

If you were to look through the comments on the yellow jersey winner\u2019s social media during this Tour de France Femmes, you would notice the repeated references to her weight. Fans have pointed out that Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot\u2019s physique in July is markedly different to what it was when she won Paris-Roubaix Femmes<\/a> in April, and concerns have been raised about whether this is portraying a positive image for women\u2019s cycling.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In her press conference after winning the final stage of the Tour, Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot was asked the tricky question about whether she has considered the example the women\u2019s WorldTour peloton is setting for aspiring young cyclists.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone prepares the way they want. For Roubaix I was much heavier because I knew I needed to be heavier to have power on the flats,\u201d the French rider responded candidly. \u201cFor this race I knew I had to climb for one-and-a-half hours over the Col de la Madeleine [on stage eight] and I tried to make the most of it. You need to adapt to the terrain you have.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added that her current weight is only temporary and something that fluctuates throughout the season: \u201cI also know that this shape that I have now I will not keep forever. It\u2019s just for the Tour de France. It\u2019s also my job to be the best as possible. We know this is an endurance sport, and to climb you need to have a [high] watts per kilogram. I made the choice, I worked hard for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to stay like this \u2013 I know it\u2019s not 100% healthy,\u201d she continued. \u201cBut we also had a good plan with the team\u2019s nutritionist and everything is in control. I didn\u2019t do anything extreme and I still had power left after nine days of racing. It\u2019s a tricky subject because you have to find the limit, but I also know I can\u2019t stay like this forever. It\u2019s the choice I made.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Tour<\/p>\n

The 33-year-old admitted that she had noticed the influx of comments about her appearance on her social media: \u201cI had quite a lot of complaints on Instagram about it, people saying I was not a good example for young people. But I also think parents should educate their kids and say to them, \u2018Pauline is like this because she\u2019s preparing for the Tour de France \u2013 it\u2019s not forever\u2019. Everyone needs to understand that it\u2019s also our job to be the best as possible. I just do my job the best way I can and that\u2019s it.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was not only the Tour de France Femmes winner who faced questions surrounding the topic of weight in the sport on Sunday afternoon. Demi Vollering, who finished in second place for FDJ-Suez, was asked by Dutch journalists if she believes that losing weight is going to be crucial to beating Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot in the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can try to lose more weight, but in the end I don\u2019t want to be skin over bones. Also, I am a lot taller than them, and I can never be as light as [Sarah] Gigante and Pauline,\u201d Vollering responded. \u201cComing into this Tour de France, we also considered whether I was going to lose more weight or not, but after the Tour de Suisse I got sick and then the biggest priority was to be healthy again, instead of losing weight when sick and then going on altitude.<\/p>\n

She noted that conversations around the topic are sensitive, and that while she is comfortable discussing it, this may not be the same for every rider.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me it\u2019s not too difficult because I don\u2019t have problems [with her weight]. In my eyes, health is always the most important. I am also proud of my heavyweight because I want to be an example, and I want to lead by example,\u201d the 28-year-old stated. \u201cI just really hope in the future I can win climbing races again with my heavy weight, and that I can show girls that you don\u2019t have to be super super skinny, and that you can believe that if you have the power, you train hard, you can make it, even if you\u2019re heavier.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking ahead to the Tour de France Femmes next year, Vollering said that she would be back to try and win yellow, but that she would not do so by trying to drastically lose weight: \u201cFor me it\u2019s also a nice challenge to keep going for big wins in the mountains with the body I have. It\u2019s not difficult for me personally, but I know a lot of girls, and riders in general, struggle with this. For me it\u2019s not the case, but I just really hope that young girls now don\u2019t think they need to be super skinny to ride in the mountains.\u201d<\/p>\n

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