Pauline Ferrand-Prévot debuts with Visma-Lease a Bike

Despite repeatedly stating that 2025 would be a year of learning and that it is only the first race of the season, many were expecting more from Pauline Ferrand-Prévot in her return to the highest level of road cycling with the UAE Tour, where she went unnoticed in the queen stage of the race, the only one with a mountainous finish.

Ferrand-Prévot discreet in the UAE Tour in her return to road competition

Mountain bike enthusiasts this season have their eyes on women's road cycling after Pauline Ferrand-Prévot's switch back to her origins. However, the Frenchwoman seems to have received a small dose of reality about how the level of women's road cycling has risen since she focused on fat tires.

In her first race of the season, the UAE Tour, it was expected that, at the very least, she would show up in the queen stage of the race with a finish at Jebel Hafeet, a 10-kilometer climb on a wide road with sustained slopes where a group of favorites quickly formed, but Pauline Ferrand-Prévot was not among them, finishing 3 minutes and 39 seconds behind at the finish line.

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Josh van Emden, director of Visma-Lease a Bike, downplayed her performance "It's a shame that things didn't go as planned on the last climb, but we shouldn't have to wait too long. Of course, it's only her first race" while also highlighting "Pauline has done a good job for the team in recent days. She has looked good and has shown her worth at the front of the group".

For regular followers of the French cyclist, this is no surprise. Traditionally, she has been a cyclist who has focused a lot on her goals, which in the past has led to criticism for skipping some competitions to perform at her best on those marked dates, often silencing many critics.

From day one, Ferrand-Prévot made it clear that 2025 was a season of adaptation and that, in a future for which she has given herself three years, her main goal is to be fighting for the Women's Tour de France. In any case, Pauline has already firsthand experienced how the average level of women's road cycling has risen over all these years "It seems like a completely different sport and I am very curious to see what I can do".

For now, she is only thinking about her upcoming races on the calendar, where she will face a course that, for a former World Gravel Champion like her, is perfect. We are obviously talking about the Strade Bianche. Another race where Pauline Ferrand-Prévot aims to shine is the Women's Vuelta a España. In between, her mission is to help Marianne Vos win the Milan-San Remo and the Amstel Gold Race.