Vollering speaks out on inequality in cycling: 'It's a shame that women are being taken advantage of'

Demi Vollering recently won her second Tour de France Femmes. The Dutch rider from FDJ-SUEZ is currently the biggest star in women’s cycling. She’s also not afraid to speak out about what needs to improve in the sport. Wearing the yellow jersey, she won the Etten-Leur Pro Race, where she once again spoke up and advocated for equal rights.

Vollering won what was only the fifth edition of the Tour de France Femmes. Before that, it was La Course, a one-day race, and before that, there hadn’t been a women’s Tour at all for a long time. “It’s wonderful to see how we continue to grow,” Vollering told the AD. “At the same time, I sometimes find it unfortunate that women are being taken advantage of. Because organizations sometimes hold us back. They don’t believe there’s that much interest in us.”

Because interest in women’s cycling has grown exponentially in recent years. “You can tell from the viewership numbers that people want to follow it and watch it,” the Dutchwoman notes. “It’s a challenge for organizations to adapt to this. But they can barely keep up with the growth we’re experiencing and how fast everything is moving.”

In Etten-Leur, the focus was mainly on the women. Of course, Paul Seixas and Jasper Philipsen were big crowd-pleasers in the men’s race, but in the women’s race, Vollering was joined by polka-dot jersey winner Puck Pieterse, green jersey winner Lorena Wiebes, Tour runner-up Kasia Niewiadoma, Marianne Vos, and others. “Criteriums are very important for inspiring the next generations. That’s how I fell in love with cycling,” says Vollering.

And so there are more opportunities for women to earn some extra money, but at the same time, the European champion knows that those opportunities are becoming fewer and fewer. “The schedules are getting busier and busier. The sport is also becoming more intense, with altitude training sessions and training camps. It’s almost impossible to compete for the top spots if you aren’t fully focused all year long.”

"In that regard, I definitely see the challenge for the riders to line up at the start of these kinds of races and give something back to the fans. Showing off a jersey with pride is, after all, something you do for the people lining the route. I really hope this continues in the future." And Vollering showed off that jersey with gusto: she crossed the finish line in Etten-Leur as the solo winner.

There, Vollering reportedly earned about 30,000 euros just for lining up at the start. According to reports, that’s half of what Tadej Pogacar earned, and also less than other big names among the men. In the Tour de France Femmes, she earned only one-tenth of Pogacar’s victory bonus. “The men race for three weeks and have longer days,” she points out. “There’s no need to equalise the pay.”

But leaving things as they are isn’t fair either, says Vollering. There needs to be a fair distribution, and that hasn’t happened yet. “Because the gap is too wide right now. Not for me personally, but symbolically. What I actually think is most important is that there are full broadcasts and that we’re given equal opportunities.”