Ferrand-Prévot arrives at Tour de France Femmes lighter, meticulously prepared and remarkably relaxed
CyclingThursday, 30 July 2026 at 08:01
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Follow us on GooglePauline Ferrand-Prévot is ready for the Tour de France Femmes. That much was clear after spending 30 minutes speaking with the defending champion and Visma | Lease a Bike leader. During an open and honest media session, the Frenchwoman discussed her relentless training, weight loss and extensive reconnaissance work, all of which have left her exceptionally well prepared for
a new battle in front of her home crowd.
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“I’m doing well,” Ferrand-Prévot said on Wednesday afternoon, having not raced since the Vuelta a España in the first week of May. “It has been a while since I last raced, so I’m looking forward to it. I’m excited to race with my teammates and curious to see where my level is. The objective has always been to be at 100 per cent for the Tour de France.”
The tone was immediately set. Just as she did in 2025, Ferrand-Prévot has undergone a transformation during the two months leading into the Tour de France. “Locked in” is the modern expression for someone who has committed completely to a project. “I feel good and ready, both physically and mentally. I have had a good preparation, and I think everything has gone the way we expected.”
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Ferrand-Prévot stresses spring victories were never essential
Ferrand-Prévot followed almost exactly the same programme in 2026 as she did in 2025. On both occasions, she competed in several major Classics without being in absolute peak condition. “But I was good at the beginning of this season. I finished second in the Tour of Flanders and third in Paris-Roubaix, but I never had it in my head that I was going to win every race I entered this year.”
Anyone who assumed Ferrand-Prévot would simply dominate women’s cycling after winning the 2025 Tour may have been slightly naive. “To win, I need a specific preparation. I choose my battles, and I cannot be good throughout the entire year. I have to select my objectives and then commit to them completely. I want to be at my best for that one goal.”
“I may not have won a race yet this year, but I have been able to help the team. I’m happy with how the season has gone,” the French rider emphasised. She continued: “I don’t race that much, which is why I can keep doing this. In the past, I enjoyed racing a lot. Now I enjoy training more and working towards one objective. I don’t need to race every weekend anymore. When I arrive at a race now, I know I’m ready. In the past, I sometimes arrived feeling tired, and you naturally enjoy it less when that happens.”
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Ferrand-Prévot finished second in the Tour of Flanders
Ferrand-Prévot feels no pressure as defending Tour champion
Although Ferrand-Prévot is the defending champion and one of the leading favourites for the yellow jersey, she is approaching her second appearance in remarkably relaxed fashion. “It isn’t only about winning, especially because I already won last year. I want to enjoy it, be happy and experience it with the team. That is also why I was so pleased with the first part of this year. As a team, we genuinely built something on the bike that we can take into this Tour de France.”
“The Tour is special to me,” she stressed, which is why she has once again put almost everything else aside for several weeks. However, she added: “If I don’t win, last year’s victory means it won’t change very much. I’m extremely motivated and have trained very hard to do it again, but even without the overall victory, the sun will still rise the next morning.”
“I’m simply going to do my best. Afterwards, there will be more time for my family and for life away from racing. Knowing that has helped me through this strict preparation. I could do it because I also know what comes after the Tour. I will be able to spend more time with my parents, who I have barely seen since Christmas. There is no pressure beyond that. I am mainly looking forward to it, including seeing the French public again. Their support last year was unbelievable.”
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Pauline Ferrand-Prévot as Tour Winner in 2025
Reconnaissance gives Ferrand-Prévot calm on ‘interesting’ Tour route
Ferrand-Prévot described the route as “interesting”, with an individual time trial and several potentially treacherous stages. “Stages 3 and 5, and then the stage to Mont Ventoux — I think there will be suspense right through to the final day, because the stage around Nice can still cause damage. There are so many possible scenarios, and there are not really any stages where you can relax. It is not a Tour for sprinters. We will see action every day, and I’m curious to see how it develops.”
The heat is also likely to play a role during August. “But I like the heat. I live in the south of France, so I’m used to it. I prefer sunshine and good weather,” she said. As in 2025, she has also reconnoitred almost every metre of the Tour route, including Mont Ventoux. “I have climbed it many times in the past, but I have also ridden it regularly since learning it would be included in the Tour.”
That preparation is typical of Ferrand-Prévot, who, just as she did in 2025, has repeatedly ridden the most important sections of the Tour route. “I like knowing where I’m racing, so I have done several reconnaissance rides.” She described Ventoux as “difficult, but different from the Madeleine”. Ferrand-Prévot expects the racing to be more tactical on the Bald Mountain. Last year, there was no opportunity to recover on the Madeleine, whereas the characteristics of Ventoux should offer slightly more room to manage the effort. “Ventoux is legendary and unpredictable.”
Ferrand-Prévot nevertheless hopes to encounter as little unpredictability as possible. “I want to control everything I can, because that makes me more relaxed. I’m very strict in the way I plan things.” She is equally precise about her equipment choices. “That is another reason why I like doing reconnaissance. It allows me to make decisions and clear my head. I want the very best equipment and preparation so that I can be in the best possible condition.”
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Ferrand-Prévot’s remarkable mindset leaves her razor-sharp again in 2026
Ferrand-Prévot’s mindset is on another level. She will therefore arrive at the Tour in peak condition and, as in 2025, noticeably lighter than she was during the spring. Before it becomes a constant talking point throughout the race, as it did last year, Ferrand-Prévot was asked on Wednesday to explain how and why she had followed this approach. “I am at my race weight and ready to race,” she began.
“I am once again lighter than I was at the start of the season because this is the major objective. At this weight, I can really perform. That applies uphill, but I also still have the power for the time trial. I followed the same preparation as last year and as I did in previous years when preparing for mountain-bike events. I am at the weight I have always targeted for a major event,” she emphasised.
“It became a major topic last year, but I know what I have done to reach this point. It is for one race and not forever. When you want to be at your best for the Tour de France, weight is important, just as watts per kilogram are important. That is nothing new. I do my job in the best possible way, and I did not take all the criticism too personally. At a moment like this, I am inside my own bubble and barely read anything.”
“The team supports me because weight loss is only one part of the discussion. People can also look at the determination and work involved in building towards one major objective. I feel good about it.”
Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
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Latest Comments
- The headline mentions a 'menstruation debate,' but the article doesn't mention the debate or even what the issue is. The writer and the editor need to do better.rjb29-07-2026
- - Vamos Tadej! Poetry on wheels. C’est magnifique, bravo campione!robert6528-07-2026
- - Merckx saying no competition feels off—what about Vingegaard in full form, and Roglic on the Giro/Vuelta blocks? There’s competition, just inconsistent due to crashes and form peaks. Still, Tadej is the most versatile since Indurain.breakawaybikerd28-07-2026
- - So Pogacar has five Tours already, but why is that a bigger deal than, say, winning the World Championships? Are the Grand Tours ranked differently?samanthak28-07-2026
- - Brilliant piece. You captured how he meters effort on long climbs and still rips everyone off the wheel. Also love the nod to Tour de l’Avenir—people forget how early he was bossing stages.tourdeforce928-07-2026
- - Slightly sceptical about the “win all three Grand Tours in one season” bit. The calendar density and recovery windows are still brutal, even with modern prep. Would love it, but sounds a tad romantic from Eddy.andrewf28-07-2026
- - Goosebumps reading Hinault and Merckx basically anointing Pogacar. Five Tours by 27 is bonkers. The Alpe d’Huez comparison to Pantani’s time… that’s era-adjusted or raw time? If raw, that’s massive given modern pacing and wind.jeremya28-07-2026
- - Not sure I buy the “Lance had no talent” line. That’s a bit extreme from LeMond. You can condemn the methods without rewriting the guy’s baseline physiology. Still, Pog is the real deal, no asterisks.cadencekingm28-07-2026
- - Loved LeMond on the podium, 40 years on. Class act. But the article downplays how much Pog’s handling and race craft matter—he’s not just watts, he’s a killer descender and positions flawlessly into crosswinds.jeremya28-07-2026
- - Quick question: when they mention VO2 max, what kind of numbers are we talking for Pogacar compared to, say, peak Froome or Indurain? Is there public data or just educated guesses?robert6528-07-2026
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