Follow the Femmes. Featuring Femmes.

Nine stages. Thousands of kilometres travelled. Countless stories.

And after spending the Tour de France Femmes following the race from the outside, one thing feels clearer than ever:

Women’s cycling is special because it is about so much more than bike racing.

Of course, the racing is extraordinary.

We watched some of the best athletes in the world attack, suffer, calculate, take risks and push themselves to their absolute limits. We saw races won through strength, but also through tactics, courage, teamwork and sometimes simply the willingness to try.

But throughout our Follow the Femmes, Featuring Femmes campaign with Castelli, we wanted to look beyond the results.

Because behind every result is a person.

Behind every leader is a teammate who has emptied herself to get her there. Stage 5 perhaps captured that better than anything: a team of incredibly talented individuals committing completely to one shared objective. 

Behind every breakthrough is a story of perseverance. We watched young riders like Isabella Holmgren find themselves alone against the very best in the world and refuse to be intimidated. 

Behind every attack is someone willing to risk losing in order to have a chance of winning.

And sometimes the moments that say the most aren't the ones that decide the race at all.

On Mont Ventoux, Cédrine Kerbaol and Antonia Niedermaier were competitors from different teams, fighting for their own positions, yet when they saw each other suffering in the heat they shared water and helped cool one another down. For a few seconds, they were people before they were competitors. It was a tiny moment in an enormous bike race, but perhaps one of the best examples of what makes the women's peloton so special. 

There is a humanity and a connection within this sport that deserves to be celebrated.

These women aren't machines. They experience pressure, disappointment, joy, frustration, friendship, fear and enormous emotion. Understanding those stories doesn't take anything away from their performances. It makes those performances mean more.

And that was really the purpose of FT.Femmes.

Not simply to tell you who won.

But to help you understand who these women are.

To introduce you to the personalities behind the helmets. To explain why a teammate sacrificing herself matters. Why a breakaway from a smaller team matters. Why an unexpected result matters. Why the person finishing 50th might have a story every bit as compelling as the woman standing on the podium.

Because we believe that is how women's cycling grows.

Connection creates interest.
Interest creates fans.
Fans create value.
And value creates opportunity.

Women's cycling has already come an extraordinary distance. Today, getting into a Tour breakaway can mean television exposure, visibility for sponsors and an opportunity for smaller teams and their riders to show the world that they belong. That visibility ultimately contributes to the sustainability and future of the sport. 

But none of us should assume that growth simply continues on its own.

It needs people to care.

So as Follow the Femmes, Featuring Femmes comes to an end, our invitation is actually very simple:

Follow a femme.

Learn her story. Remember her name. Follow her season, not just the Tour.

Watch women's racing. Like the posts. Share the stories. Talk about the racing. Ask questions. Join a women's cycling community. Bring a friend along. Show up at a race.

Engage.

Because every new fan starts with a connection. 

And the more people who connect with these women, the bigger this sport can become.

That is what FT.Femmes was always about.

Follow the Femmes.
Featuring Femmes.
And help us keep moving women's cycling forward.

A huge thank you to Castelli for believing in this campaign and helping us tell these stories, to everyone who contributed from inside and outside the peloton, and most importantly, to every one of you who followed along.

The Tour may be over.
But keep FOLLOWING THE FEMMES !!

Reminder that Castelli is giving one lucky winner a premium set of cycling kit !!!

Stand a chance to WIN a Set of Premium @castellicycling Kit - their Corretto W Jersey and matching bib!

To enter:

✅️ Sign up / be a member of the Rocacorba Collective
✅️ Engage with our GIVEAWAY post by telling us what your favourite #FollowTheFemmes moment was this month.
✅️ Make sure you are following @rocacorbacollective and @castellicycling

Thats it! JOIN THE MOVEMENT in celebrating LES FEMMES 💛💛