The cycling world is buzzing with conversation as the dust settles on the 2025 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, but the headlines aren’t just about who stood on the podium. Instead, much of the post-race focus has shifted to a heated debate around body image, athlete health, and the pressure to conform to a certain physical ideal in women’s professional cycling. At the heart of this discussion is Dutch star Demi Vollering, who finished as runner-up on August 4, 2025, and has since taken a public stand against the sport’s obsession with weight.
Vollering, a consistent general classification threat since the Tour de France Femmes debuted in 2022, found herself at the center of attention for reasons that had little to do with her powerful riding. In the final press conference following her second-place finish, she revealed, “around 80 percent of the questions I received in the final press conference were about my weight.” The onslaught of body-focused queries was triggered in part by the dominant performance of French rider Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, who admitted to shedding four kilograms in preparation for the race—a move that many speculated gave her the edge in the brutal Alpine climbs, ultimately leading her to the overall victory.
Ferrand-Prévot’s approach wasn’t without controversy. Speaking after her win, she explained, “Everyone prepares the way they want. For Roubaix I was much heavier because I knew I needed to be heavier to have power on the flats. For this race, I knew I had to climb for one-and-a-half hours over the Col de la Madeleine [on stage 8] and I tried to make the most of it. You need to adapt to the terrain you have.” She detailed a carefully managed weight loss, working closely with nutritionists and coaches, and stressed, “I didn’t do anything extreme, and I still had power left after nine days of racing.”
But for Vollering, the conversation around weight struck a nerve. In a candid Instagram post on August 8, she pushed back against the notion that being lighter is always better. “Losing weight is not the ultimate solution,” she wrote. “For me, performance is about far more than that. It’s about strength. Balance. Fueling well. Feeling mentally strong. And recovering faster than everyone else.” She added, “I make, and will continue to make, every decision in my career by putting my health first. Always.”
Vollering’s stance is a sharp contrast to cycling’s old-school mantra that no sacrifice is too great in the pursuit of victory. She made it clear that she won’t risk her well-being for the sake of chasing a number on the scale. “The truth is: I’m not built to be the lightest rider in the peloton,” she posted. “And I don’t want to force my body to become something it’s not. I’m already racing at the highest level with a strong, lean, capable body.”
This isn’t just about one rider’s philosophy. Vollering’s comments come amid a broader reckoning in the peloton about the pressures placed on female athletes. During the Tour, her team director, Lars Boom, had suggested that losing weight could help her compete better in the mountains, a sentiment echoed in questions from the press. Vollering’s refusal to bow to these expectations resonated with many, especially after fellow pro Cédrine Kerbaol warned that cycling was in a “dangerous moment” regarding rider health and weight, “breaking the taboo” by addressing the issue openly.
Ferrand-Prévot, meanwhile, defended her own approach, emphasizing that her weight loss was temporary and strategic. “Between Roubaix and the start of the Tour, I lost four kilos that I hope to put back on fairly quickly. I don’t want to stay like this, I know it’s not 100 percent healthy,” she admitted. “But we also had a good plan with the team’s nutritionist, and everything is in control.” Her victory, achieved through explosive attacks in the Alps, was a testament to her adaptability, but she was quick to clarify, “It’s just for the Tour de France. It’s also my job to be the best as possible. We know this is an endurance sport, and to climb you need to have a [high] watts per kilogram. I made the choice, I worked hard for it.”
The debate over body image and health in women’s cycling is hardly new, but the intensity of the conversation at this year’s Tour de France Femmes has brought it to the forefront. Vollering, who won the Tour in 2023 and has finished second in each of the past two editions, is using her platform to advocate for a healthier, more balanced approach to success. “So why share this now? Because young girls are watching us,” she wrote. “What we show. What gets celebrated as ‘the way’ to succeed. Sometimes, what they see quietly plants a seed. That’s why we, as high-performance athletes, teams, and a sport, have a responsibility.”
She went further, calling for cycling to become a safe environment where athletes—especially young and developing riders—can ask questions, speak openly, and receive proper guidance. “Because the risk is real. Because health isn’t always visible. Because disordered thinking can grow quietly and stay hidden for a long time. Everyone’s body is different. Every athlete needs a different approach. What matters is making the right decisions for your health, with the right support.”
Vollering’s message to aspiring cyclists was direct: “To every young rider out there: Take care of yourself. Ask questions. Trust your body. Every champion’s story is different. And yes, for those wondering: I’ll do everything I can to get there again—on my way.”
As the cycling world reflects on a Tour de France Femmes marked by both athletic brilliance and an urgent conversation about health, the words of both Vollering and Ferrand-Prévot are likely to echo for seasons to come. Their contrasting approaches have sparked discussion not just about what it takes to win, but about what it means to succeed responsibly in elite sport.
The 2025 edition of the Tour will be remembered for more than just the grueling climbs from Praz-sur-Arly to Chatel Les Portes du Soleil, or the numbers on the final GC podium. It’s become a touchstone for a wider movement—one that asks whether cycling can be both fiercely competitive and truly healthy for its athletes. With leading voices like Vollering and Ferrand-Prévot at the helm, the peloton seems ready to ride toward a future where strength and balance matter as much as watts per kilogram.
