Due to the growth of women’s cycling, more and more former riders can become team directors. However, female coaches are still significantly underrepresented in the Tour de France Femmes. “Sometimes it’s easier to talk to a woman.”
Jolien D’hoore digs into her memory. After a few seconds, the Belgian former rider comes up with a name: Donna Rae-Szalinski. “That’s the only female team director I had in my career,” she says in an interview with NU.nl.
The 35-year-old D’hoore was a professional from 2008 to 2021. During that time, she estimates that at least 90 percent of the team directors in women’s cycling were men. “But now we are seeing more and more women in the team director’s car.”
D’hoore is setting out the tactical lines for AG Insurance-Soudal in this Tour, the team of yellow jersey wearer Kimberley Le Court. She is one of the eight female *directeurs sportifs* in the French tour. Out of a total of 44, the proportion of women comes down to 18 percent.
“So we are still in the minority,” says Marieke van Wanroij, team director and head coach at the Dutch team VolkerWessels. “Ultimately, there needs to be someone in the car who brings knowledge, experience and quality. It doesn’t matter whether that’s a man or a woman.”
“But I do think it’s positive that you see a trend that more and more former riders remain active in the peloton, for example as team directors. This way their knowledge and experience are retained for the sport. And with that, we are lifting women’s cycling to a higher level.”
Riders prefer to talk about some things with a woman
VolkerWessels is the only team in the Tour with two female team directors. In addition to Van Wanroij, Larissa Havik also has that role. “We are in favor of a good mix in our coaching staff, so that you complement each other,” says Van Wanroij. “We hired Larissa so that a female coach is also involved in the team.”
According to Van Wanroij, there are topics that riders prefer to discuss with a woman. “For example, saddle problems or problems in the menstrual cycle. As former riders, we understand that and can perhaps anticipate the issue earlier. And for the riders, it’s nice that they don’t feel embarrassed to talk about it.”
D’hoore doesn’t think that her working method differs much from that of her male colleague Stijn Steels. “But I do feel the riders well. I have been one of them, so the threshold is low. If there are problems, the riders come to me right away. A woman is simply different from a man, so that sometimes makes it a little less uncomfortable.”
Ina-Yoko Teutenberg, in her eighth season as team director at Lidl-Trek, states that “a woman may think slightly differently than a man”. “But there are also plenty of men who can lead a women’s team. As long as you have respect for women, that’s the most important thing.”
