"Roubaix wasn’t even in the plan": Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s reveals that her iconic victory was by chance

Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s return to road racing in 2025 was likely the best decision of her career. The peloton’s standout star dominated the season with wins at Paris-Roubaix Femmes and the Tour de France Femmes. Thanks to her, the women's branch of Visma | Lease a Bike enjoyed the most brilliant year in its history, which has now been revealed to have come about almost by chance.

On Visma - Lease a Bike’s official team podcast, Ferrand-Prévot reviewed everything that happened during the 2025 campaign, a season that saw her win the Vélo d’Or as Female Cyclist of the Year, and was also elected as the best cyclist by our fans in the Cycling UpToDate awards. In her comments, the 33-year-old French rider revealed that her participation in Paris-Roubaix, the spark for it all, was not initially on the cards.

"I wasn’t scheduled for Flanders or for Roubaix," began Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, who additionally finished second at the Tour of Flanders, coming close to taking two Monuments before winning the Tour de France.

She ultimately opted to race both Flanders and Roubaix after her strong showings at Milano–Sanremo (12th, just outside the top 10) and Strade Bianche Donne (3rd on the podium): "Then we saw I was in good shape, so we decided at that moment to put me in Flanders and Roubaix."

On her Paris-Roubaix debut, Ferrand-Prévot arrived thinking the race would be less punishing than it proved to be. She admitted she may have underestimated the event’s atmosphere. "For me, it was my first time, and I think I underestimated the whole race a bit because there were so many people at the roadside."

"I’m French, so the French fans went crazy when they saw me at the front of the race. When I entered the velodrome, I thought, 'What’s happening? This is… not even real.' You can’t imagine that moment; it took me a few days to realise I had won Paris-Roubaix," she concluded.

Looking ahead to 2026, however, Ferrand-Prévot is not expected to return to Roubaix. For now, her schedule includes the Tour of Flanders, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, and the Tour de France Femmes.