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Christel Ferrier

Former Olympian & Professional Cyclist

Meet Christel, a former Olympian and professional cyclist who has taken her passion for the sport to new heights as the first woman to serve as a pilot ambassador for the entire Tour de France race. With a storied career that includes podium finishes at the European Championships and a top ten placement at the World Championships, Christel transitioned from being a fierce competitor to inspiring the next generation, as a coach at the National Cycling Centre in Bromont. Her trailblazing role with the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift not only breaks barriers but highlights her extraordinary career.

Liv: Hello Christel, can you tell us a bit about yourself?

Christel: I’m a former high-level cyclist, Olympian, Franco-Canadian, and mother of 2 children (5 and 9 years old). I’ve transitioned to become a cycling coach. I currently work at the CNCB and I am a pilot ambassador for Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) on both the men's and women's Tour de France. My passion is cycling but also sports in general, which I love to share with all generations and levels.

Liv: How and when did you start cycling and competing? Who introduced you to the sport?

Christel: I started young, practicing various sports like ice skating, climbing, kayaking, and athletics. I got into cycling later, at the age of 16, with my PE teacher and the mountain bike club in my village. I competed in my first races and then met my husband on my cycling team. He coached me, and gradually, with hard work and perseverance, I started to achieve good national results.

Liv: How did you start your career as an athlete? Tell us a bit about your career.

Christel: As I mentioned, I started late because I wanted to prioritize my studies over sports, so I had to learn the basics, which explains my late development. I then turned towards cyclo-cross, where I quickly had good national and international results, with a podium at the European Championships and a top 10 at the World Championships. This led to being noticed by top-level professional road teams, as I was a teammate of World and Olympic Champion Nicole Cooke, and later Emma Johansson, who was on the podium in the same events.

Liv: Through your coaching company, you have the chance to work with young cyclists. What is important to you when working with young people? How do you try to inspire them to discover and embrace the sport?

Christel: The most important thing for me is that young people enjoy riding and maintain this desire to stay active and engage in sports throughout their lives. I want to instill in them the value of effort, hard work, and perseverance, qualities that will serve them well later. If they succeed or win, that's great, but it's not the ultimate goal. What I aim for is the personal growth and balanced development of the athlete, sharing my experience with them.

Liv: You now work for the National Cycling Centre in Bromont, can you tell us about your role and involvement there?

Christel: I've been working at the CNCB for 8 years, since I returned to Canada. I am a coach and coordinator of the Road and Track programs. I manage activities at our new indoor velodrome and a program close to my heart, Cycliste Averti, created by Vélo Québec. We teach in primary schools, to kids aged 10-12, how to ride safely on the road; they learn about signaling and good behavior to have with other road users.

Liv: You were selected as a pilot ambassador for the Tour de France and will be the first woman to do the entire Tour. Tell us a bit about the event and your duties.

Christel: This year, I am very honored by ASO's trust, the organizer, to be a pilot ambassador for the entire men's Tour de France. It's a highly coveted position and only about ten of us get to do it, with me being the first woman to do the whole Tour. My role will be to drive a partner's car in the heart of the race with VIP guests to give them a great experience, explaining the race, the riders, the stages, and sharing my high-level experience. It’s a role where you have to be 100% focused with the many spectators along the roads, the cyclists riding very fast; there’s no room for error. And this for 3 weeks, from June 24 to July 22.

Liv: What does the Tour de France Femmes with Zwift mean to you?

Christel: It's a stage race I would have loved to do. For several years, I raced the women's Giro, but there was a need for a major media event like this to further highlight women and help develop women's cycling.

Last year, experiencing the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, even if not on the bike, as a pilot ambassador was fantastic. I saw the evolution of women's cycling and reconnected with former competitors or teammates. I was thrilled to explain to VIP guests the achievements of the female riders, the race proceedings, and the evolution compared to my career.