The Wheel Talk Podcast

This week on the podcast, Abby, Georgie, Loren, and Gracie talk Tour of Flanders and Dwars door Vlaanderen: does FDJ United-Suez have any faults (not this week, they don't), what is going wrong with UAE Team ADQ, Marlen Reusser's comeback and subsequent injury, and more.Plus, Abby talked to Franziska Koch, the best transfer of the year, about her move to FDJ United-Suez, taking on a leadership role at Paris-Roubaix Femmes, and what you need to know ahead of the big Classics races as a rider.

This week, Abby, Gracie, Georgie, and Loren focus on the Ronde van Brugge and In Flanders Fields-In Wevelgem. They discuss the sprint that ended an incredible winning streak, how the peloton got to that point, and which teams are finally putting everything together, as well as how UAE Team ADQ and FDJ United-Suez could have played the race on Sunday differently.Abby also sat down with Lucinda Brand of Lidl-Trek to talk about her incredible cyclocross season, her role on the road team, and how the team is starting to come together just in time for the Tour of Flanders.

The full team of Gracie, Loren, Georgie, and Abby are back this week for a lengthy discussion on Milan San Remo, including the attack that wasn't on the Cipressa, that crash, how UAE Team ADQ lost the race, and how Lotte Kopecky won it. Plus: a discussion of whether this means SD Worx-Protime can salvage their spring.Abby also called up Margaux Vigié, who was one of the Visma-Lease a Bike riders to go down in the crash, to talk about her perspective on the incident.Abby also sat down with Pfeiffer Georgi of Picnic PostNL to talk about her comeback after crashing in the 2024 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, her role on the team, and more.

There was a lot to talk about after the Trofeo Alfredo Binda, so Loren, Gracie, and Georgie all joined Abby this week on the podcast. We discuss the strength and depth of UAE Team ADQ, the importance of confidence in yourself and your team, how data has changed in-race decisions, and more.

It's a full team this week to discuss Strade Bianche! Gracie, Loren, and Georgie joined Abby to talk all about FDJ United-Suez, how the team expertly pivoted when Demi Vollering was taken off the board, what made Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney and Elisa Longo Borghini's bids for the win different from Chabbey and Koch's, and more.We also talked about the importance of The Cyclists' Alliance, and you can find my written piece on their financial difficulties here.

A lot was learning during Opening Weekend, and Abby, Loren, and Gracie are here to break it all down. From FDJ United-Suez's seamless tactics to a promising spring ahead for Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney and our favourite storylines to look forward to this Classics season. Up next: Strade Bianche!

It's Opening Week! The week before opening weekend, the Wheel Talk podcast just opened our new Instagram account. Follow us for women's cycling coverage and news, plus more content from Abby, Georgie, Loren and Gracie.This week, we talk about Pauline Ferrand-Prèvot's extension, salary caps, and the upcoming Classic - Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.Plus, Abby chatted with Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig about coming back from her crash in 2024, her first year with Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto, and the one race she wants to add to her palmares.

After a windy edition of Setmana Valenciana, Gracie, Loren, and Abby chat about the Spanish stage race that attracts a good amount of top talent. They also break down the new Paris Roubaix Femmes course, what it means, and how the change of date will impact the race. Finally, it's back to the Winter Olympics to talk about which retired riders would return to the peloton today and throw their hats in the ring.

Gracie, Loren, Georgie, and Abby are back this week to talk about the UAE Tour, Lorena Wiebes, sprinting in February, UAE Team ADQ, and...the Winter Olympics.

This week, Abby, Gracie, and Georgie wrap up all the action in Australia with a chat about the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, including a fantastic rant from Gracie about the "doomed" solo breakaway. Georgie also sat down with Tour Down Under winner Noemi Rüegg before the race on Saturday to talk about her win in Adelaide, plus we look ahead to the UAE Tour and the Winter Olympics in Italy.

Before the peloton makes its way to Geelong for the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, Abby, Georgie, and Matilda Raynolds have a few points to wrap up the Tour Down Under. Plus, in Mallorca, it's Movistar vs. UAE Team ADQ for two (maybe three) races straight.

After a thrilling conclusion to the women's Tour Down Under, Matt de Neef and Gracie Elvin are joined by reigning Olympic time trial champ Grace Brown to break down all the action from a dramatic final stage.

The 2026 WorldTour season is underway at the Santos Tour Down Under in Adelaide. After a fascinating finale to the opening stage, Matt de Neef and Gracie Elvin are joined by TDU assistant race director Nettie Edmondson to break down all the action and take a peek behind the curtain of Australia's biggest bike race.

It's 2026, and we're back! This week, the whole team gets together to talk about the Australian Road Nationals and preview the upcoming Tour Down Under.

The team is back for the final episode of 2025 to talk about the latest news in women's cycling and create a totally chaotic Wheel Talk playlist just for you.

For the final interview of the year, Abby got the chance to talk to David Spindler, neuroscientist and Cognitive Performance Strategist. He has worked with some of the top riders in men's and women's cycling, as well as a host of other sports. They talked about some of the most common mental struggles for professional athletes and how David helps his riders maintain happy lives while excelling at their craft.

This week, Wheel Talk continues the offseason interviews with a conversation with Ellen van Dijk. Ellen and Abby talk about Ellen's delayed retirement, her bid for the 2024 Olympic time trial in Paris, her pregnancy, and her time with Lidl-Trek vs. other teams.

This week, Abby talked to Gracia Sotomayor, the artistic cyclist from Peru. Sotomayor grew up knowing that, as a woman in a man's world, she had to be a certain way and do certain things. She had it all – a stable, good job, a home, and a partner to take care of her, but she was unhappy. When she started riding her fixed gear bike, everything changed. A few years later, Sotomayor was living in Germany, training to become Peru's first artistic cyclist on the world stage. Now, she inspires Spanish speakers everywhere to gain confidence and independence through cycling.

You could make a Bingo game out of how many times Gracie, Loren, Georgia, or Abby bring up the development problem in women's cycling – the lack of lower-level races and teams, WorldTour teams signing riders too young, etc. But we aren't the only ones constantly harping on about these issues. This week, Loren and Abby sat down with someone who has been pinpointing these problems for years and is actively working to combat the lack of development on a daily basis: Natascha Knaven-den Ouden.If you follow her on social media, you'll know she has come head-to-head with a lot of the challenges currently facing the lower levels of women's road cycling, and as the General Manager for NXTG Racing, she's guiding the next generation through the growing landscape.

This week, Abby handed the mic over to Matt de Neef, who got the chance to catch up with one of Australia's up-and-coming talents, Talia Appleton. Appleton has been upping her game every season, but broke through in earnest this year with a podium finish at Tour de l'Avenir and a stellar ride at the World Championships. Matt sat down with her to talk about how she felt this season and what she's eyeing in the coming years.Make sure to read Matt's written piece here.

This week on the Wheel Talk Podcast, Abby chats with road cycling legend Tiffany Cromwell about her split focus on road and gravel with Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto, the future of gravel and how the discipline can improve, and what it's like to be a race promoter in gravel right now.

In their final group show of the season (maybe), Loren, Gracie, and Abby talk about their top moments of the year, their favourite riders, and their favourite teams. They also answer some questions sent in by listeners about the best staff members of teams, best domestiques, and more.You can send in your own question for the team to answer, just head on over to this link to record an audio message.

This week, we take a detour from chatting about the 2025 season to talk next summer. The ASO unveiled the route for the 2026 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift last Thursday, and it has everything. Iconic climbs, a legit time trial, plenty of opportunities for the opportunists, and a leg-breaking circuit race to end the nine-stage week. One thing missing? Sprint stages. Abby sits down with Kate Veronneau to talk about next year's Tour, what they are excited about (everything), and Zwift's decision to continue sponsorship of the race for four more years.

This week on the podcast Abby, Loren, Gracie, and Georgie talk about the races in China – the Tour of Chongming Island and the Tour of Guangxi – and how they might better fit in the calendar. They discuss Liv AlUla Jayco's Continental team and what they're doing right, Mavi García's departure from the team, the importance of a social media presence for riders, and the death of the long time trial in women's cycling.Next week we are going to talk about the season as a whole, so if you've got any topics you want us to touch on or questions for us, you can submit those and tag us on the Wheel Talk Discord or leave a voice memo HERE. If you leave us a vocie message, make sure to select "Wheel Talk" from the dropdown menu.

Gracie, Georgie and Abby try to figure out what on earth happened at the Gravel World Championships over the weekend and discuss the Lorena Wiebes win rate from 2025 and more in this week's Wheel Talk Podcast episode.With a cameo from Heidi Franz, who finished thirteenth at the Gravel Worlds on Saturday.

This week the whole team of Georgie, Loren, Gracie, and Abby talk European Championships, the UCI's decision to cut the U23 Nations Cup series, and more.How Magdeleine Vallieres prepared for the Worlds here.

To honour the epic World Championship road race we saw on Saturday, we've assembled an equally epic podcast team this week: Grace Brown and Iris Slappendel join Abby and Gracie to talk about what went wrong for the French, Dutch and Italian teams in Kilgali and what went right for the podium.With audio diaries from Alison Jackson (Canada), Amanda Spratt (Australia) and Niamh Fisher-Black (New Zealand).

This week on the Wheel Talk Podcast we are obsessed with time trialling...the World Championships time trials to be exact. Gracie, Loren, and Abby look back at the elite women's race on Sunday, what it means for the upcoming road race, who opted to skip the race against the clock in favour of their chances on Saturday, and the U23 ITT and riders to watch in the future. Plus, an update on the latest transfers and more news (hint: babies!).

World Championships week starts on Sunday with the elite time trials, and we're here to break it down for you. Abby, Georgie, and Gracie also discuss the latest transfers, Fem van Empel's decision to step away from road, and the Tour Féminin de l'Ardeche where Lotte Kopecky ended her road season after taking one final win.

This week Abby, Gracie, Loren, and Georgie chat the latest transfers, the Simac Ladies Tour, the upcoming Tour de Feminin l'Ardeche (and its time trial), and more.

This week we talk about the end of Ceratizit, some of the top transfers so far, the Classic Lorient Agglomération (GP de Plouay), and the upcoming Simac Ladies Tour.

It's mailbag week! With limited racing to discuss this week, Abby, Gracie, Georgie, and Loren answer some of your burning questions. From what we want to see in women's cycling going forward to that Serena Williams ad. Plus: who was our messiest teammate? It's a fun one this week.

This week on the Wheel Talk Podcast, Abby, Loren, Gracie, and Georgie dive into the Tour de Romandie Féminin and the UCI's decision to disqualify five teams before the start of the first stage. They also talk about Charlotte Kool's move to Fenix-Decuninck and what that means for the sprinter and the Dutch team.

This week on the podcast, Matt de Neef, Georgie Howe, and Iris Slappendel join Abby Mickey to talk about some of the biggest stories from the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. From the massive increase in viewership to where the top riders of this year's Tour go from here. There is far too much to talk about from this year's edition.

Today, Georgie sits down with Dr Stacy Sims to discuss how women – from the professional to amateur ranks – should optimize their hormones for performance. This was a recording before the TDFF, but we thought it was an apt time to publish given the conversations sparked. It is all in an endeavor to answer the question: how sustainable is the current state of professional women's cycling?

The fourth edition of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift is now complete and today's final stage delivered plenty of entertaining storylines. Join Georgie Howe and Matt de Neef as they break down another action-packed day of racing at the biggest event on the women's calendar. This final episode features audio diaries from Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek), Mags Vallieres (EF Education-Oatly), and Ally Wollaston (FDJ-Suez).

For the last time this Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift Shawn Clarke calls in from the Liv AlUla Jayco team car. Shawn comments on stages 7 and 8, two of the most exciting days of the race, including the decisive Queen stage.

The queen stage of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift proved every bit as decisive as we'd expected. Join Georgie Howe and Matt de Neef on the Col de la Madeleine as stage 8 unfolds before your ears. This episode features audio diaries from Sarah Gigante (AG Insurance-Soudal), Ally Wollaston (FDJ-Suez), Jelena Erić (Movistar), and Magdeleine Vallieres (EF Education-Oatly).

The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift has been entertaining from the very start and today's stage into Chambéry was no exception. Join Georgie Howe and Matt de Neef as they break down the big storylines from another great day of racing as the queen stage beckons. This episode features audio diaries from Sarah Gigante (AG Insurance-Soudal), Emma Norsgaard (Lidl-Trek), and Brodie Chapman (UAE Team ADQ).

The proper climbs have begun at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift and it's been non-stop action as a result. Join Georgie Howe and Matt de Neef as they break down an entertaining and satisfying stage 6. Today's episode features audio diaries from Imogen Wolff (Visma-Lease a Bike), Ally Wollaston (FDJ-Suez), and Sarah Gigante (AG Insurance-Soudal).

Shawn Clarke is back, reporting from the Liv AlUla Jayco team car. Clarke talks through his observations from car 2 - more crashes, full gas racing, and more riders struggling with positioning.

We aren't even into the proper climbs yet and already the GC contenders are coming out to play. Join Georgie Howe and Matt de Neef as they break down all the action from stage 5 of the 2025 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. Today's episode features audio diaries from Ella Wyllie (Liv AlUla Jayco), Brodie Chapman (UAE Team ADQ), and Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek).

In some ways it was a regulation sprint stage at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, but there was still plenty to talk about. Georgie Howe and Matt de Neef are joined by the wonderful Iris Slappendel to break down all of the action from a fast and fascinating day of racing. This episode features audio diaries from Franzi Koch (Picnic-PostNL), Ella Wyllie (Liv AlUla Jayco), Sarah Van Dam (Ceratizit), and Imogen Wolff (Visma-Lease a Bike).

It was a day that looked to be heading towards a rather routine sprint finish. And then things took a turn for the worse. Loren Rowney, Georgie Howe, and Matt de Neef bring you all the headlines and more from a dramatic third stage of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. This episode features audio diaries from Franzi Koch (Picnic-PostNL), Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek), Jelena Erić (Movistar), and Susanne Andersen (Uno-X Mobility).

Abby here, momentarily infiltrating the Wheel Talk podcast for this mini-episode with Shawn Clarke, Director for Liv AlUla Jayco. After a fantastic start to the race for the team, Shawn checks in with some insights from inside the caravan at the biggest race in women's cycling.

Two days of the 2025 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, two wonderfully entertaining stages. Loren Rowney, Georgie Howe, and Matt de Neef break down all the action from a day where the oldest rider in the race took stage honours and Kim Le Court made history. Today's episode features audio diaries from Sarah Van Dam (Ceratizit), Ella Wyllie (Liv AlUla Jayco), Imogen Wolff (Visma-Lease a Bike), and Susanne Andersen (Uno-X Mobility).

What a stage to kickstart the fourth edition of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift! Loren Rowney, Georgie Howe, and Matt de Neef break down all the action from a day in which the stage-hunters and GC favourites (and the GOAT herself) duked it out for the first yellow jersey of this year's Tour. Today's episode features audio diaries from Brodie Chapman (UAE Team ADQ), Jelena Erić (Movistar), Ally Wollaston (FDJ-Suez), and Mags Vallieres (EF Education-Oatly).

Matt de Neef, Loren Rowney, and Georgie Howe are on the ground at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. On the eve of the race, they discuss all the top contenders for the general classification and stages, plus chat with Iris Slappendel, Kim Le Court (AG Insurance-Soudal) and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) ahead of the fourth edition of The Femmes.

Fresh off an impressive performance at the Giro d'Italia Women and days before the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, Abby sat down with Sarah Van Dam, Ceratizit's breakout star of 2024. In her first season in the WorldTour Van Dam has already finished on the podium of a WWT stage race – the Itzulia Women – but she doesn't want to be considered just a climber just yet.You can also read more about her over at Escape Collective.

Today on the Wheel Talk podcast we briefly look back at a wicked fast Giro d'Italia Women and look ahead to the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift with a full route breakdown featuring the one and only Sarah Gigante.

Abby and Georgie talk about the Giro d'Italia overall, the final stage, and more. With audio diaries from Brodie Chapman (UAE Team ADQ), Amanda "Spratty" Spratt (Lidl-Trek), Ana Vitória Magalhães (Movistar), and Lea Curinier (FDJ-Suez).