Warning issued for clothing checks at Tour de France Femmes after reports of bra padding

The Tour de France Femmes with Zwift have been issued a warning regarding clothing checks before Wednesday's individual time trial, due to reports of riders using padded bras to enhance aerodynamics. According to Wielerflits, several women's WorldTour teams have raised concerns about the use of larger, padded bras as chest fairings to improve airflow around the body.

This practice has been seen before, including at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Research indicates that these fairings could provide time gains of almost one second per kilometer. The UCI rulebook explicitly prohibits any accessories that alter a rider's morphology. During stage three, organizers ASO shared a press release warning of extra checks during stage four's time trial.

Riders must arrive at the final checks no later than ten minutes before their start time. The UCI defines "non-essential elements" as any item not strictly necessary for clothing functionality or other items' functionality. Violations could result in disqualification and a fine of 50-200 CHF (£46-184, $62-248). It remains unclear how the race jury will enforce the ban on padded bras, with potential private inspections by female commissaires.

However, the issue of determining the acceptable amount of padding remains unresolved, potentially leading to a grey area in enforcement. Stage four's time trial is a 21km race from Gevrey-Chambertin to Dijon, with a steep 1.8km climb in the first half, starting at 14:51 local time.