Your Monday Briefing

Voxnews

Get your week started with the latest news from the world of women’s cycling:

The teams for the inaugural Women’s Tour of Scotland, which runs from 9-11 August, have been announced. The race, which will present a 350km long route over three days, will feature a leader’s jersey that is made from recycled plastic. The teams to compete are: Ale Cipollini, Bigla, Brother UK Tifosi p/b OnForm, Drops, Tibco-Silicon Valley Bank, Korean National Team, Lotto Soudal Ladies, Norway National Team, Park Hotel Valkenburg, Scotland, Rally UHC Cycling, Team GB, Valcar Cylance, Jadan Weldtite and Torelli Assure Madison Team
Exactly one year from now, the Olympic Games will commence in Tokyo and for the first time ever BMX Freestyle will be an Olympic discipline. Cycling is one of the five sports, besides athletics, fencing, gymnastics and swimming that has been featured at the Games since 1896.
The UCI has launched its Ride and Smile campaign, which aims to promote cycling as an enjoyable activity for young and old. The goal of this campaign is to grow the popularity of the sport and to increase the appeal of cycling among all nations.
Jolien D’hoore broke her left elbow at the BeNe Ladies Tour and latest reports indicate she will be out of training for 6 to 8 weeks. We wish her all the best for her recovery.

Recent results

Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Canyon//SRAM) won her sixth French MTB title at the national championships after returning to racing in April following surgery on both of her legs.
At the U.S. Track nationals, defending National Champion, Jennifer Valente (Sho-Air TWENTY20) won the Elite Women’s Scratch Race, Points Race, Omnium and Madison (with current U.S. road champion Megan Jastrab).
At the UCI BMX World Championships in Heusden-Zolder in Belgium, American Alise Willoughby took out the win ahead of Laura Smulders (NED) and Axelle Etienne (FRA).

Zwift Blog

Boels Dolmans rider Christine Majerus, in her blog entitled “How to nail your break“ shares her tips on how to take a break from cycling and recharge your batteries. It’s great advice for all cyclists on how to get the most out of recovery time.

We hear more from cyclists who are involved with InternationalElles, a group of female cyclists who rode all the stages of the Tour de France, one day ahead of the men’s race. This week, they include:

Scottish rider Lucy Ritchie tells us about how she got into cycling and her preparation for this special event.

Alex Chart shares with us her story of how she became involved with InternationalElles and what motivated her to ride all the stages of the Tour de France with this group of female cyclists.

Helen Bridgman explains why she is so passionate about cycling and why she decided to ride with InternationalElles this year.

Voxwomen announcements and events

Want to participate at an unforgettable week of cycling? Then the Voxwomen Big Week Off, is for you. It runs from 13th to 20th October in Can Campolier, Banyoles near Girona in Spain. This area is home to Rocacorba Cycling, run by professional rider Ashleigh Moolman Pasio and her family. By paying a non-refundable deposit of £150 you can secure your place in this fantastic event. There are a limited number of places, so you can be sure to reserve your place and then pay in installments. If you would like to participate, take advantage of this unique offer by clicking here.

This week in cycling history…

23 July is the birthday of retired German rider Judith Arndt. She won the silver medal at the Athens Olympics, and became the world champion in the same year at the road race world championships in Verona, Italy. Among many other achievements, she has also held six national titles, and at the end of her career she took gold in the time trial at the 2012 World Championships.