LIEGE (Belgium) – It's a rainy afternoon between the Flèche Wallonne and the Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the appointment is set for 16pm but both us and Marion Rousse we're (a little) late: Traffic, it seems, isn't just an issue in Italian cities.
With the director of the Tour de France Women's cycling, the topic can only be women's cycling. It's a topic of conversation. And the conversation reveals the great desire for growth in France. A culture and a foresight that it would be wonderful to capture.
Marion, let's start with the Tour de France Femmes. We're approaching the fourth edition since its rebirth in 2022: what has changed in that time?
It's true that this is only the fourth edition, but it's much more. I have the impression that we have been accepted by the public and have entered into people's daily lives. With the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, we wanted to create a race that would be known beyond just the most dedicated fans. But it's the Tour de France: you want to watch it because it takes place during the holidays, because it's a free event, and because you can travel with it: live or on TV.
Travel…
Since the first edition, we've wanted to recreate a sporting event that would be fantastic to watch. The women responded overwhelmingly. We wanted to take the “codes”, the cornerstones, of the Tour de France that work and recreate that magic on the Tour de France Femmes too. I think about the caravan, the fact that it is a popular event, the route... So in just four years there has already been a before and after Tour Femmes.
And with this last sentence you have already touched on another topic. What has the… Tour Femmes for young female cyclists?
Up to this point, putting a girl on a bicycle was something abnormal. How many times as a child I found myself being the only child starting in a race among all the other children. Now we offer the opportunity to show parents that it is normal, that a girl on a bicycle is beautiful and that female cyclists can be truly elite athletes. Young riders women can identify with champions, whether it's taking their bikes on vacation or competing. Before the Tour de France Femmes, this wasn't possible, or not entirely. It's hard to identify with champions you don't know. Or if there aren't any races. Now there are.
Last year, Christian Prudhomme told us that the Tour de l'Avenir is supported by the Tour de France. What does the Tour Femmes?
Christian is right. He has a habit of saying that the Tour de France is the top of the pyramid, but for the pyramid to hold together, the base must be solid. And that basis is also of the Tour itself. The basis comes from the young people, for example from Tour de l'Avenir Femmes, which has only been around for a short time, but also from races like the Tour de Bretagne and all the competitions that existed before us, which allow young riders to start and progress from year to year.
Clear…
Let's be clear: before, there were five paid girls in the group, and all the others rode for them. Therefore, the races weren't interesting. The fact that they had attracted sponsors, invested in women's cycling, and that The UCI's introduction of minimum wages means that today many girls are professionals.
As a result, the level rises…
It's rising, but above all, it's more consistent. The races are much more interesting. In all the classics we've seen, there's always been suspense, and the same athlete has never won. But let's go back to before: to get to this point... It is necessary for even small races to survive. And they need to pay attention.
It is true that there is a strong demand from the locations to host the stages of the Tour Femmes?
It is true! In almost 90 percent of cases, when a location applies to host a stage, it does so for both the men's and women's Grand Boucle. It's fantastic. With my work as a commentator for France Télévisions, I travel a lot and everywhere they look for me in person telling me that they would be happy to welcome the Tour FemmesLet's take Alpe d'Huez…
Tell us…
A legendary climb that needs nothing more. They've always seen the arrival of men, and they welcomed us in exactly the same way. In meetings, they told us: "What we have done for men we want to do for women. We don't see any difference."
Are you the one who traces the routes?
We do it together with Franck Perque, He was a professional cyclist, especially on the track. He's mostly the one who manages the courses, but obviously we're always in touch and share our ideas. Next year's course is also practically finished.
This year you've included three very long stages, over 160 kilometers. Why?
It's true, but Now that the level is more homogeneous, we can also allow ourselves a little more “madness”. We think that at Vallone Arrow on the penultimate lap there were still fifty in front. And at the Paris-Roubaix Women's cycling With just a few kilometers to go, three riders were fighting for the win. Having an extra stage, we've included several stages for everyone at the start, because the mountains will be quite steep. Starting on Thursday, when we reach Clermont-Ferrand, the elevation gain will be significant.
What do you think about extending the women's Grand Tours to two weeks? Is it possible?
Physically speaking, it's possible. The girls are capable of doing a 15-day Giro. But be careful: we talked about the base of the pyramid earlier. There are races that existed before us, and if you take 15 days of racing, you'll eliminate them or cover them up somehow. We need to move forward gradually because even though women's cycling has grown, it has nothing to do with men's cycling.
What do you mean?
The women's teams consist of 15 athletes, the men's teams of 30. The staff is not the same. If you take 15 girls to a major Giro, you won't have enough for the other races. The door is not closed to anything: In just four years, we've increased the number of hamlets by one. This shows that we're making progress. but we must remain cautious. The first thing is to respect the other competitions. Our role is to support them, not to disrupt them.
But on the technical and tactical front, a two-week race changes…
Yes, obviously you can do a longer route in 15 days. And it's not just up to us: UCI authorization is required for certain distances.
The route is tougher and better distributed. Who's your favorite?
Well, I think about Demi Vollering, but also to the defending champion. And to Pauline Ferrand-PrevotThe "old" French champion who returns to the road after having won everything in mountain biking and tells you: «I'm back on the road because there is the Tour Femmes and within three years I want to win it"After winning Roubaix too. It's brilliant. I'll tell you this…
Go…
There's a lot of pressure on the French guys to win the Tour again after Hinault. And Christian and I often joke at the end of the Tour every year: "Voilà, we didn't win the Tour." Go and see that in the end Bernard Hinault's heir is a girl. But for the next edition I think Vollering is still a little superior. Even Lotte Kopeky it is very strong.
And Elisa Longo Borghini?
Yes, right, Elisa... But she's never had much luck at the Tour. Of course, she's very strong. Imagine, while I was commentating on the Flèche Wallonne, I was thinking: He's been a professional for over 10 years now and he's incredible. He gets better every year. And then he's also strong in the time trial.
A small step back: it's always said that women's cycling is growing. But what does that actually mean?
It means that before, there were no sponsors because no one was talking about us. The races weren't broadcast on TV, the results were just online... Now it's not like that. They've seen that watching women's cycling on TV is fun, and it's good for the spectators too. I, who come from TV, and I see that women's cycling worksWhen a men's and women's race is held on the same day, as in the Flèche Wallonne, spectators stay to watch the women's finish.
We were thinking about this in Huy. Why do you at ASO propose the men's race first and then the women's?
Because we realized that there is more interest. When they see the men's race pass by, they say, "Oh, but there are women too," and they stay. And that's a fact. Otherwise, women's racing does not receive the same attention.
Cycling has changed a lot since you were a kid. Do you like everything about this evolution?
I've lived my cycling life. Now I follow this other one from my car, and I'm very happy to be the director of a race, a sport, that allows girls not to experience what I experienced. There were few races, you had to knock on doors because there was no money to organize, not even the athletes had any. Today they have more rights, maternity leave, a minimum wage, and are better looked after by their staff. No, there's nothing I regret about my time. Today I see them happy, content at the start of the races. At the Freccia, the first ones in the final climbed the hill, which would have been the 18th fastest time among the men. They're going strong.
