{"id":197164,"date":"2024-11-26T11:35:07","date_gmt":"2024-11-26T11:35:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=197164"},"modified":"2024-11-26T11:53:24","modified_gmt":"2024-11-26T11:53:24","slug":"skoda-spain-reimagined-the-bicycle-face-myth-in-support-of-womens-cycling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2024\/11\/26\/skoda-spain-reimagined-the-bicycle-face-myth-in-support-of-womens-cycling\/","title":{"rendered":"\u0160koda Spain Reimagined the \u2018Bicycle Face\u2019 Myth in Support of Women\u2019s Cycling"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you ever heard of the \u201cBicycle Face\u201d phenomenon? Let\u2019s take a little history trip to the 19th<\/sup> century. What might today seem like an antiquated anecdote of a bygone era had real consequences on the lives of real women.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In 1890s Europe and America, bicycles were seen by many as a feminist instrument: they provided women with increased mobility, began to redefine Victorian ideas about femininity, and were eagerly taken up by many women active in the suffrage movement. Some Victorian-era men and doctors were clearly threatened by the outrageous idea of women gaining more independence so they reached for the only logical solution \u2013 bogus science.<\/p>\n<\/lite-youtube>\n

The ridiculous made-up diagnosis of \u201cBicycle Face\u201d syndrome was used as an attempt to deter women from cycling. It claimed that cycling allegedly created dark shadows under their eyes and their faces formed masculine traits. Another threat to women on bikes was supposedly that this ailment shall deter all suitors as the look of strain is going to stick forever. Soon, women\u2019s cycling was also linked to miscarriages, difficulty breastfeeding, depression, and a whole bunch of other unfounded nonsense. Thankfully, the issue was put to rest a few years after it emerged.<\/p>\n

Fast forward to 2023. \u0160koda becomes the official sponsor for La Vuelta Femenina in a milestone event for Spanish (and global) road cycling. The year marked a brand new name for the event, part of the UCI Women\u2019s World Tour, which finally completed a years-long attempt to create a full women\u2019s Tour of Spain. It also rode on the coattails of the historic return of the Women\u2019s Tour de France. To promote \u0160koda\u2019s sponsorship and its commitment to women\u2019s cycling, Proximity Barcelona <\/em>turned the myth of \u201cBicycle Face\u201d<\/a> first into an empowering photographic project and then a series of interviews and short documentaries.<\/p>\n

One of them<\/a> featured Dori Ruano and Joane Somarriba, two well-known Spanish female \u2018professional\u2019 ex-cyclists and Olympic winners, discussing that women\u2019s cycling made huge progress nowadays \u2013 which wasn\u2019t always the case. “My entire sports career was combined with my studies because it was clear that I would not be able to live only through cycling after my retirement,” shared Ruano and Somarriba echoed: \u201cThere have been years when we have been\u2026 very little valued, very little protected.\u201d But both matadors of the sport agreed that they are excited to see women pros thrive now: since 2024, Spanish teams must pay their cyclists a minimum salary to compete. “When you are an athlete and you have a salary to dedicate yourself to what you love the most, your passion, logically, it’s life-changing,” commented Ruano.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0documentary then takes a look at current women pros: Yurani Blanco, Usoa Ostolaza, Marta Romeu, and Isabel Mart\u00edn. They all lived the reality of having a full-time job alongside working on their elite cycling career, which logically, suffered as a result. According to the documentary 2023, 78% of women pro cyclists had to combine cycling with another job.<\/p>\n

Blanco who also used to be a child educator: “You had to ask for a vacation to go to a competition.” Ostolaza who also used to be a physiotherapist: “At that time, I didn’t earn a single euro from cycling but in order to survive, you need to work.” Romeu who also used to be a politician on combining pro cycling with another job: “You don’t rest, you are super stressed and the accumulated fatigue is brutal. In the end, you are a professional without being a professional.” Isabel Mart\u00edn who also used to be a telemarketer: “Your reality is very different from that of a real professional preparing for the goal.”<\/p>\n

The extraordinary decision about minimum salary saw all the above leave their \u201csecond jobs\u201d and embark on a journey dedicated solely to becoming the best athlete they can be, which immediately resulted in less stress and fatigue, equalling better training and, therefore, significantly better results without the constant worrying about rent money and performance upkeep.<\/p>\n

In the 19th<\/sup> century, \u201cBicycle Face\u201d was a fictitious syndrome invented to prevent women from cycling. In 2024, it\u2019s a clever jab at sexist tropes, representing the face of satisfaction of getting to fully dedicate yourself to what you are passionate about.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Have you ever heard of the \u201cBicycle Face\u201d phenomenon? Let\u2019s take a little history trip to the 19th century. What […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":99,"featured_media":197319,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[329,334],"tags":[8125,8126,7139,538,2264],"global-categories":[3366],"class_list":["post-197164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-road-cycling","category-socialising-and-culture","tag-bicycle-face","tag-isabel-martin","tag-marta-romeu","tag-women-cycling","tag-womens-cycling","global-categories-cycling"],"yoast_head":"\nBicycle Face: \u0160koda Supports Women's Cycling<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Have you ever heard of the \u201cBicycle Face\u201d phenomenon? Let\u2019s take a little history trip to the 19th century. 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