OFFICIAL: Pauline Ferrand-Prévot checks out of any racing for the remainder of the 2026 season
CyclingSaturday, 12 September 2026 at 09:00
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot's race day counter will stop at 20 this season. The 2025 Tour de France Femmes champion saw her title defense cut two days early after her performances throughout the race did not meet the high standard the Frenchwoman sets for herself. After a careful consideration, her Team Visma | Lease a Bike agreed that it'd be better to shift focus towards the 2027 season.
"Pauline Ferrand-Prévot will not race again this season. In consultation with the team, it has been decided that Pauline will take the time to rest and recover for the remainder of the season. We wish Pauline all the best for the weeks ahead and look forward to seeing her racing with the team next season," the team communicated via X.
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot will not race again this season.
— Team Visma | Lease a Bike Women (@visma_lab_women) September 11, 2026
In consultation with the team, it has been decided that Pauline will take the time to rest and recover for the remainder of the season. pic.twitter.com/7IQfwuniWH
Mont Ventoux heart-break
Ferrand-Prévot started her season on a high level, finishing 2nd at Tour of Flanders and 3rd at Paris-Roubaix. The rest of the spring campaign was not as successful anymore, but nothing indicated that the cobbled classics would be the 34-year-old's season highlight at the time.
Despite the disappointing 35th place overall at Volta a Catalunya in May, there was all reason to believe Ferrand-Prévot would arrive to the Tour de France Femmes set to take place three months later in a top shape.
But the stage 4 individual time trial already showed apparent cracks in Ferrand-Prévot's armor, something that unfortunately would not improve as the days went by.
And on Mont Ventoux, the last chance to turn things around, the Visma leader lost over 10 minutes on Kasia Niewiadoma, bidding goodbye to any ambitions of second Tour title. One day later, Ferrand-Prévot would not show up to the start anymore.
Read also
"Pushed too far"
Without an apparent injury nor illness, what went wrong in the preparation of the former mountain bike and road world champion? That's the question everyone asked themselves, but the Frenchwoman's coach eventually concluded that Ferrand-Prévot may have simply overtrained herself. With enough rest, there's hopes she'll be ready to write a new page in 2027.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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