How Australian cyclist Tiffany Cromwell prepares with her F1 partner for the Tour de France Femmes

Australian cyclist Tiffany Cromwell is about to make a dream that once seemed impossible.

The 34-year-old Olympic athlete will join the Canyon-SRAM Racing Team for the inaugural women’s Tour de France Femmes, which kicks off on July 24.

“This will be a historic moment for women’s cycling,” said Cromwell.

“We have been pushing the women’s Tour de France for several years and have finally been given a very exciting global platform for the sport.”

It was the first time since the 1980s that the women’s equivalent of the Tour de France was held.

The Tour de France Femmes is expected to be one of the most watched races on the women’s calendar and will kick off in Paris the same day the men’s race finishes.

It will cover 1,029 kilometers and eight stages that will include flat sprints, mountain top finishes, rock and gravel sector, country trails and city walks.

Cromwell is experienced in competing in the cobblestone sector.(Getty Images: Tim de Waele)

A road and gravel cyclist, Cromwell said the opportunity for women to wear their own yellow jersey would increase the visibility of the sport.

“If you talk to anyone who knows nothing about cycling, they know the Tour De France,” he said.

“Just having that [Tour De France] attached to the name and global coverage it will receive, will take women’s cycling to the next level.”

‘What a moment for us’

Cromwell wasn’t the only one excited.

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His partner, F1 driver Valtteri Bottas, also can’t wait for the Tour de France Femmes.

“She loved watching women’s cycling grow and thought this was a great moment for us,” Cromwell said.

Cromwell and Bottas live in the south of France near Monaco, where they cycle and train together.

“He was very supportive of my career, came to a lot of my races and I went to his F1 races,” Cromwell said.

One of the biggest names in motorsport, Bottas uses bicycles as part of his endurance training.

The 32-year-old includes mountain biking, road biking and gravel riding as part of her training routine after she started having problems with running.

“His training side is really good because he enjoys cycling,” said Cromwell.

“That helps him and he can also be a good ear to me.

“When you have someone who is in the same high-pressure sport – if not higher pressure – it’s nice and fun to be able to share the two sports.”

While Cromwell shared his extensive cycling knowledge with Bottas, he also gained insight from the Finn.

“Valtteri has a lot of knowledge about aerodynamics,” he said.

“He will look at certain things on the bike and count the numbers to make it more aero [aerodynamic].”

Cromwell chasing stage win

Former Australian Olympic cyclist and world champion Kate Bates says women’s cycling is having a light bulb moment with the Tour de France Femmes.

“Tour de France Femmes is going to be big,” he said.

“There are a lot of guys in sports who go out of their way to get women to get their time in the sun.”

Cromwell is expected to compete for a stage win at the Tour de France Femmes.(Thomas Maheux)

Bates says the likes of Cromwell and other Australians competing on the inaugural tour — like Amanda Spratt, Grace Brown, Nicole Frain and Sarah Gigante — are all capable of making an impact.

“They’re not just competing names,” he said.

“They are names that we can realistically see as a stage of victory.”

Cromwell, who has won two stages at the women’s Giro d’Italia (2012 and 2016), said she hoped the Tour de France Femmes would provide a new audience for the sport.

He said it would also provide insight into the female rider’s personality.

“We are similar to the men but also different in the way we race,” said Cromwell.

“This is a typical style of racing, with a smaller team.”

Cycling women make progress

Cromwell can remember a non-existent support network when he started his international career in 2007.

“Teams are running on a small budget, a lot of drivers are racing for no pay, you stay in the team house, you can’t have independence and we don’t have a lot of media focus,” Cromwell said.

Since then there have been significant improvements, such as cyclists receiving the minimum wage, world tours and maternity leave.

“Before, if you wanted to have a family, you basically had to stop your career,” says Cromwell.

“Now women can come into sport and know they have all the things that come with being a professional athlete, like the right physiotherapists, chefs and support team.”

Cromwell represented Australia at the Tokyo Olympics.(AAP: Martin Rickett)

Cromwell credits virtual cycling platforms like Zwift for tackling inequality in cycling.

“Zwift has been a tremendous support on the part of women and they are a major partner of the Tour de France Femmes,” she said.

During the first COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, Zwift hosted the world’s first virtual Tour de France. Men compete alongside women, with equal coverage and prize money available.

In the real world, sponsorship and equivalent prize money are a long way off, but Cromwell says progress is being made.

“At least we can now say we have the Olympics and the Tour De France Femmes,” he said.

“It’s great for the next generation of young girls who can now aspire to be the next Tour De France champion.”

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