Prévot signs for EF Education-Oatly! Tour de France champion's sister joins rival team

Pauline Ferrand-Prévot will no longer be the only Prévot family member in the professional peloton. As it seems, the Tour de France Femmes is truly magical and continues to attract talented cyclists from France to chase their dream on home roads. Such is the story also for Pauline's younger sister Axelle Dubau-Prévot who re-enters the road peloton with EF Education-Oatly after a seven year absence.

"At EF Education-Oatly, they think outside the box. It's the only team where I see myself, because I don't have a traditional cycling background. I want to be serious, but also maintain the joy and fun of racing," she explains in a team press release.

While Axelle's most outstanding road result is probably a 12th place at the under-23 European Championships 2018, the 29-year-old has become a prominent gravel cyclist with a French title, two European Championship top-10s, and an overall victory at the Nedbank Gravel Burn stage race in South Africa where we've seen Tom Pidcock join the men's competition at the end of October.

"We were also looking for a rider who is competitive on the gravel circuit, but who can also be an asset to our road team. Axelle fits the bill perfectly," team manager Elsa Tromp enthuses. "On the road, she's a bit of an all-rounder, and on gravel, she has the endurance for stage races and the speed for one-day races. Axelle doesn't have a typical cycling background, and I appreciate that. I think it gives her a healthy perspective on cycling and life, as she has sometimes chosen to step away from the sport. This maturity speaks volumes about her character."

In Axelle's story, there are clear similarities to her older sister. Just like Pauline, Axelle gave up on road at one point, but eventually, the calls of Tour de France Femmes were too strong to resist. Of course, unlike Pauline, Axelle doesn't aim to win Tour by a long shot, but even just participating would be a dream come true, she indicates:

"When I heard a few years ago that the Tour de France was coming back, I was no longer active in the cycling world. I felt a bit sad that I would never be able to participate. I'm French, and when someone asks me what I do and I say I'm a cyclist, they immediately ask if I'm riding the Tour de France," she explains.

"That's the benchmark. Now that I've seen the race and see that EF Education-Oatly really wants to achieve something big in the Tour, I would love to be part of the Tour squad someday."