Tiffany Cromwell (Canyon-SRAM) accepts that there is still a long way to go for women's cycling but the introduction of a full Ardennes programme next year is a big step in the right direction. Since 1998, the women's peloton has been competing in their own La Fleche Wallonne and, for a brief run, they had an Amstel Gold Race.
The 2017 season sees the Amstel Gold Race come back after a 14-year hiatus, and the first-ever women's Liege-Bastogne-Liege. Their Ardennes week will run concurrently with the men's equivalent.
"To have a full Ardennes week is exciting for the sport and it's exciting to know that we are getting that platform and showing that we deserve that platform," Cromwell told Cyclingnews. "It’s exciting, that's the best way to put it. There's this whole thing about we need to have the women’s side of the sport develop as their own sport and not always be compared to the men but, in terms of the big races, they're the races that everyone knows about.
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"We’ve seen a lot of progression in the last four years. There’s still a lot of work to do in women’s cycling but it's taking the right steps forward."
Cromwell was speaking to Cyclingnews before the new women's WorldTour calendar was officially announced and there was still speculation around a possible multi-day women’s Tour de France. Ultimately, that didn’t happen and while it moved to a mountainous parcours, La Course remained a single day. The change, which will see the women finish part way up the Col d’Izoard although after only 67 kilometres, received a relatively good reception but the ultimate goal remains a multi-day race.
"To have a mini-women's Tour de France would be huge," Cromwell said. “For me, if I meet a random person on the street and they find out I’m a bike rider you get two questions normally. Have you been to the Olympics or the Tour de France? Everybody knows the Tour de France. You say, ‘Yeah I do that sort of thing'. But, to be able to say that you have that, and know that there is a want and a need for it, is good."
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