Australian pro Brodie Chapman rides for UAE Team L'IMAD and had built up to race the Tour de France Femmes for a second time. Unfortunately it was an edition that ended early for her, with a DNS on stage 2 as illness intervened. It hadn't been the easiest of runs to make it there in the first place either, as she went down hard in the Tour of Flanders in April, fracturing her pelvis and facing a tough recovery to get back for the Tour, which Chapman detailed in her pre-race column.
In her second of three columns, Chapman joins us while recuperating, rather than racing, to cast light on the pivotal stages. She takes us inside some of the plans and mindsets behind the unfolding action and also delivers some home truths about the simmering speculation on the dynamics within her own team.
