Pauline Ferrand-Prévot ready for her MTB farewell on Sunday: "If you have to win the Olympics, you might as well win them at home"
Mountain Bike
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot will leave the world of mountain biking after the Paris Olympic Games. This won't be her farewell to the cycling world as a whole, as the plan is to devote two more years to the road and compete in the Women's Tour de France.
For her last shot at the Olympic gold in her favorite discipline, she couldn't have picked a better time and place than the home Games in Paris. It'll be this Sunday that we'll learn whether Ferrand-Prévot will re-enter the world of road cycling as newly crowned Olympic champion - or not.
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"My last big event is this Sunday, with the Olympic Games," declared the Frenchwoman at a press meeting. "If you have to win the Olympics, you might as well win them at home (laughs). These will be my fourth Games, apart from that, I've won pretty much everything. It's the title that I'm missing..."
"I've worked a lot. These last few weeks at altitude, I've done the hardest sessions I've ever done," she explained. "Since this winter, I've also been working with mental trainers. It's a whole and I think I'm ready both physically and mentally. I've really put everything in place to be Olympic champion. It's the dream of a lifetime... these Games at home, it's really great."
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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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- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
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- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
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- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
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