Merry Christmas from Women's Cycling Weekly 🎄

Thanks for supporting women's cycling this year

Dec 24, 2021

Hello! Welcome to the final issue of Women’s Cycling Weekly of 2021 🚴‍♀️ Settle in for a bumper edition of the newsletter that should keep you going through Christmas! 🎄

As 2021 comes to a close and we start to look back on the year, we at WCW have been reflecting not only on a season of great racing, but also of great writing, video, podcasts and much more in the world of women’s cycling. As the sport grows and improves year on year, so does the content that comes with it, and 2021 has been no exception. The year started with a bang in the form of Rouleur’s special women’s issue in January (which somehow feels like yesterday and several years ago), and the following eleven months didn’t disappoint. The stories haven’t always been fun - investigations into abuse in cycling made for hard but essential reading - but the work of journalists, podcasters and creators has been bigger and better than ever this year.

Amy and I have been lucky enough to contribute to this excellent year in women’s cycling, both in writing and the two shows we’re lucky enough to help make (the Freewheeling podcast and The Bunnyhop, if somehow you didn’t know yet), and we wanted to use this final newsletter of the year to celebrate some of the highlights and standout stories from 2021. Rather than just hear from us (you’ve had enough of that for one year), we roped in some of our colleagues and friends to tell us their favourites from the last twelve months. Every piece mentioned is worth revisiting, and we’re very thankful to everyone who took the time to contribute. That’s enough from us - here’s what they picked!

Tilda.

Loren Rowney - former pro and Freewheeling Podcast co-host

The Bunnyhop

“I feel like these past two years, overall content on women's cycling has just increased 10 fold! The Bunnyhop has been such a welcomed addition with monthly half hour shows with interesting guests, race analysis and 'behind the bars' look at the women's peloton.”

Sadhbh O’Shea - writer at VeloNews

‘Health Mate abuse case highlights major flaws in the system’ by Kirsten Frattini

“It’s not the nicest of stories to look back on, but this piece on the conclusion of the Patrick Van Gansen abuse case by my former colleague Kirsten Frattini is, in my opinion, one of the standout articles in women’s cycling this year. It was Kirsten that brought this story to light in 2019 and her dogged determination to continue reporting on it helped to get some semblance of justice for the affected riders. While his punishment is far from what it should have been, it will hopefully help more riders to speak out in the future.”

Aoife Glass - writer and host of the Spindrift podcast

Girls Gotta Eat Dirt

“A really fun video that, for me, captures the pure joy of messing about on the trail with friends. Three housemates, the beautiful trails of Colorado, and tongue-in-cheek delivery, this is the perfect antidote to serious ride videos.”

Rapha Gone Racing: Tour Divide 2021 - Lael Wilcox

“Lael Wilcox’ 2021 Tour Divide attempt didn’t go according to plan, and that’s what makes this story of endurance cycling just a little bit different to rest. Smoke from raging forest fires choked her lungs and affected her ability to ride, so instead of triumph this story ends with a poignant portrayal of how it feels to stop, and also the impact the fires have on the environment and the people that live there - an issue that’s only going to become more pronounced as climate change progresses.”

Orla Chennaoui - writer, presenter and podcaster

jojoharper_

A post shared by Jojo harper (@jojoharper_)

“I would like to nominate Jojo Harper's picture of Lizzie Deignan in the Roubaix showers as my standout contribution for this year. Much as I loved all the images of Lizzie with her bloodied hands matching her nail varnish after an epic and warrior-like victory, the intimacy and emotion of this image, even as Lizzie's face is entirely covered by her own hands, is a beautiful insight into what was probably her first moments alone after winning the race. The image invites the onlooker to question what is going inside her head, and guess at the joy, relief and exhaustion that must surely be mixed in there. The ensuing debate over whether the image was sexual, shows exactly why we need to keep representing females in this way. We must have confidence in the representation of the female body as a powerful tool, rather than continue with the fear of intent behind another's gaze. This image is about ownership for me. Lizzie's ownership of the race, Jojo's ownership of an earned right to be in that privileged position and our collective ownership over how the female narrative should be shaped going forward. I simply love everything about this picture.”

Lukas Knöfler - women’s cycling correspondent at Cyclingnews

‘Anna Kiesenhofer wants more cycling in her life, but she won’t be turning pro’ and ‘Unsung Heroes’ by Sadhbh O’Shea

“I very much enjoyed Sadhbh's series of articles on the unsung heroes of cycling, often getting previously-unknown angles from riders who are not usually in the spotlight. Most of the riders profiled were men, but in the last couple of weeks she also wrote about Janneke Ensing and Alena Amialiusik. In addition to that, her profile of Anna Kiesenhofer can almost be put in the same category: Kiesenhofer became a hero overnight, and the story of a rider who consciously forgoes the pro ranks and stays amateur is a special one that Sadhbh brought across well.”

Kirsten Frattini - women’s editor at Cyclingnews

‘Abuse in cycling and an open letter to the UCI’ by Genevieve Jeanson

“I've spent nearly a decade investigating and uncovering the complex story of Canadian cyclist Genevieve Jeanson. The alarmingly high hematocrit, doping violations and suspension merely scratched the surface of a harrowing account of the long-term abuse and isolation under her former coach Andre Aubut .Every adult individual in a position of authority and trust in her life at that time; coach, parents, physician and sporting institutions, failed her as a child athlete. This story dug deep into the fundamentals of ethics in sport concerning abuse, and it was a story that needed to be told to the cycling world.

Jeanson, now 40, penned a powerful open letter to the International Cycling Union (UCI) in April - her formal complaint - expressing her concern that the sport needed to do more to protect its athletes. It was remarkable to witness an individual heal from horrendous trauma and feel empowered to use her voice to affect change. Jeanson has said that she has undergone a transformation: from victim to survivor to warrior, and she is fighting back, not just for herself, but for the future of all athletes in the sport.

Jeanson's story has been the catalyst that led to my investigations into the abuse and sexual harassment cases surrounding Health Mate-Cyclelive team manager Patrick Van Gansen and Doltcini-Van Eyck team manager Marc Bracke, and to uncovering the major flaws in the system.”

Richard Moore - writer and co-host of The Cycling Podcast Féminin

‘The selfless brilliance of Anna van der Breggen’ by Abby Mickey

“In terms of writing, I liked Abby Mickey's analysis for CyclingTips of Anna van der Breggen's performance as domestique de luxe at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. It was one of the standout races for me, with Van der Breggen doing something you rarely see champions do, and I thought Abby's appreciation of her ride was spot on.

I'd also like to give a shout out to Voxwomen's Monday briefing. It isn't fancy or flashy, there are no bells or whistles, but all the important stories are there in bullet points – it's an essential way of ensuring that you don't miss anything.

Finally, and as hard as I tried not to pick something from my own stable, I can't not highlight The Cycling Podcast Féminin's coverage of the Women's Tour with the new team of Rose Manley, Lizzy Banks and Lionel Birnie. I couldn't watch the race so relied entirely on the podcast to follow it and it was brilliant. They brought the race, the places and everything around it to life; they also sounded like they were having fun, which made it a fun listen.”

Rachel Jary - writer for Rouleur

“I know what it’s like to be an rock bottom”: Shanaze Reade profile by Ian Cleverly

“This profile was first published in Rouleur's best selling women's issue and is a fantastic, insightful and poignant piece. Ian's rapport with Shanaze really shines through as she gives such honest and candid answers. I think he tells her story in a sensitive way, outlining the pressures on elite athletes and the struggles they can face after retirement, while also capturing her personality and noting the positive outlook on life she has now. What Shanaze has to say is fascinating, and the barriers she had to overcome to get to the top of elite sport make her successful career all the more remarkable. It's a pretty perfect example of how to write a profile of someone: it goes deep beneath the surface and discovers what made Shanaze into the person she is today.”

Rebecca Charlton - writer and presenter

The Cycling Podcast Féminin

“The wonderfully light-hearted and unpredictable Cycling Podcast Feminin, now fronted by Rose Manley, never fails to see me laughing embarrassingly loudly to myself on a train, and the fearless approach of the presenters to share true opinion on the race calendar and beyond puts this up there as essential listening. What I also admire is the respect it commands in the peloton, so much so that not only journalists like myself but the riders largely listen religiously - not least to hear what’s said about them - but because this is one of the vital destinations to bring yourself up to speed on everything you need to know.

My stand out episode of the year was Annemiek van Vleuten in conversation with Orla Chennaoui, after the podcast cited a mis-quote that had been widely shared about her love for the UCI leaders’ jersey. The fact she then delved into a brilliant one-to-one to explain that her opinion was entirely the opposite was fascinating listening.”

Tilda

‘The Big Issue: Life as a plus-size female cyclist’ - Emmie Harrison-West

“Having to pick my personal highlight now, I immediately feel bad for everyone I asked to pick theirs - it’s hard! There is one piece, however, that has stayed with me since it was originally published in Rouleur 101. Emmie’s article was really the first time I’d really seen women’s body image and weight discussed so frankly in the cycling media, and not in a negative or weight-loss oriented way. It can be hard to deal with your body image in the world of cycling, especially when you’re not slim. It’s something I’m always thinking about - when I’m riding, when I’m at a race, when I got in front of the camera on The Bunnyhop - but rarely feel comfortable talking about it. Emmie’s honest, insightful and reflective article reminded me it’s not just me that feels that way, and added to a (hopefully) growing conversation.”

‘Kasia Niewiadoma - The power of the mind’ - by Richard Abraham

“And because I definitely can’t just pick one, this is another of my favourites from this year. Kasia Niewiadoma is one of the most thoughtful riders in the peloton and always gives an interesting interview, but I thought this one was particularly great. She speaks openly and eloquently about mindfulness and her mental approach to racing, as well as her view on the new generation of riders and how women’s cycling is changing. It’s an excellent read.”

Amy

First of all I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone who took the time to contribute to this section and especially to Tilda for putting it together. She truly is the backbone of this newsletter nowadays — she basically draws the outline and I come along like a daft little toddler and colour it in.

Anyway, I was surprised that nobody else mentioned The Run Up yet. I love anything that gets into the human stories behind sport and this was a great way for people to get to know the riders and staff in the lead up to big races. I only wish there had been more of them!

This week

Results 🏆

UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup Val di Sole (Rnd 9)

Fem van Empel
Marianne Vos
Maghalie Rochette

UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup Rucphen (Rnd 10)

Marianne Vos
Lucinda Brand
Denise Betsema

UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup Namur (Rnd 11)

Lucinda Brand
Denise Betsema
Puck Pieterse

Upcoming Races 📆

CX

26th December: UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup Dendermonde (Rnd 12)

27th December Telenet Superprestige Zolder

30th December X2O Trofee Loenhout - Azencross

1st January X2O Trofee Baal - GP Sven Nys

2nd January: UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup Hulst (Rnd 13)

Read 🗞️

A look into the past and present of women who build bikes
The outcome of The Cyclists’ Alliance survey about U23 World Championships (spoiler alert: just give them a separate race already)
[Content warning: suicide] Kelly Catlin’s family are searching for answers on the impact of concussion
Why Joss Lowden is still hungry for more

Listen 🎧

Last week’s Freewheeling in which I force my silly little quiz on poor Abby and Loren while drinking my silly little glass of prosecco aka leaning fully into my role as commitment-free class clown. Also some actual serious chat about the world of women’s cycling. And this week’s in which Abby speaks to CX world champion and all round legendary rider Lucinda Brand.

Joyeux anniversaire to The Cycling Podcast Feminin which recently turned 5! One of the original women’s cycling podcasts and even though I contribute to the ‘competition’ that doesn’t preclude me from enjoying this one too. Highly recommend giving it a listen.