From Injury to Etape: Finding My Power Again Contributed by Team Parcours member Victoria Stansfield

As athletes, we all know how injury can affect us not just physically but mentally too, questioning our identity and well… ‘what do I do now when I can’t do what I love’. For me in 2023 when I was hit by a car during IRONMAN Brazil, and had a brain injury, taking all the training and exercising away and the group sessions, made me realise how much I do love and value the sport.

What is important is trying to focus on what you can do. What are the elements of rehab or training that perhaps you can do and focus on that. For some, like Parcours Ambassador Victoria Stansfield, that’s exactly what she did. Whilst pursuing a goal to be a professional ultra runner, an injury led her to using cycling in her rehab. She focused on what she could do, whilst getting back to fitness… what happened then was pretty spectacular… 

From Injury to Etape: Finding My Power Again

I recently moved to Chamonix to pursue becoming a professional ultra runner, someone who just loves tackling hill climbs and using the bike for cross-training. At the time, I had no idea how important cycling would become to me.

Then, in February, everything came crashing down. I slipped, fell, and broke my pubic rami, a small bone at the base of the pelvis. It was incredibly frustrating and painful, made even worse by the timing. It happened the week before our big move.

By June, I was finally cleared to cycle again (carefully). The moment I got the green light, I jumped into the saddle, quite literally. Within three weeks I was riding 12 hours a week and falling in love with it. The mountain roads around Chamonix were nothing like the terrain I had ridden before: smooth, beautiful, and endlessly challenging.

It didn’t take long before I wanted to find a race to aim for. Something to keep me motivated, give me a focus, and let me test myself properly. That’s when I found the Campilaro, a four-day stage race in the Pyrenees, and, just a week later, the Étape du Tour Femmes avec Zwift. Two huge challenges, back-to-back. Perfect.

 

 

So, what is L’Étape Femmes?

L’Étape du Tour Femmes avec Zwift is the official amateur edition of the Tour de France Femmes. The unique part is that we ride the exact same course on the same day as the pros. We set off at 6:30 am, while the peloton starts later in the afternoon.

Because it is the same course and the same day, you get to experience some of the magic usually reserved for the pros: fan zones, roadside supporters who camped out all night, and the incredible atmosphere of the Tour itself. This year’s challenge was a summit finish atop the Col de la Madeleine, a relentless 21 km climb that tested every rider who dared to take it on

 

The Race

I started off in a really good group over the first climb, the Col de Planpalais — 13 km at 6.4%. It was a perfect opener, steady gradients and a chance to settle into the day. I actually really enjoyed it.

From there, we descended, and with the rain pouring down, the roads were sketchy. My bike handling still needs a lot of work, and it showed. Every corner demanded full focus. After a rolling descent came the Col du Frêne, much shorter but still a kicker.

Unfortunately, I made a small handling error on the descent which left me stranded from my group on the flat section that followed. With no wheels to sit on, I just put my head down and focused on reaching the base of the Madeleine as best I could.

I started the climb with three other men and had hoped for some pulling power, but instead I found myself doing the work, their unexpected domestique.

The Col de la Madeleine itself was brutal, 21 km of steady, punishing gradients. The weather meant I could not see much of the scenery, but I am sure on another day it would be stunning. With 5 km to go, everything changed: we hit an incredible fan zone, hundreds of people lining the road, cheering, whistling, ringing cowbells. It was electric and gave me the push I needed to keep grinding all the way to the top.

Why is L’Étape du Tour Femmes Important?

For years there has been the Tour de France and L’Étape du Tour, but nothing equivalent for women. Having an Étape for the Tour de France Femmes is so much more than just another event, it is a statement of progress.

It highlights how far we have come in including women in cycling, and how the sport is opening its doors wider. To ride the same course, on the same day, and to feel that support on the roadside was incredible. It is not just about the race itself, it is about visibility, opportunity, and showing that women belong at every level of this sport.

From Broken to Building

Coming back from injury is not just physical, it is a mental process too. You question everything: your strength, your goals, and your place in the sport. But this race helped me rebuild some of that belief.

Now, off the back of L’Étape, my life has done a complete 180. I am being approached by national French teams to join their ranks next season, something I never foresaw when I first picked up the bike as a distraction from injury.

So, I am going all in. The next year is about learning, developing, and seeing just how close I can get to the real yellow jersey.