At a time when women’s cycling did not yet enjoy the professionalism and international popularity it does today, Valentina Scandolara was already hooked. Cycling has been part of her life since, at the age of eight and already a keen runner, she was presented with her first bike. That was at the end of the 1990s, and she hasn’t looked back.
After a career of highs (including three titles of European Champion - two on the road, and one on the track- and podiums at the UCI Road World Championships) and lows (not least physical health issues due to overtraining) the Italian athlete, coach and Sport Director has landed in Aigle, Switzerland. That is the home and training base of the UCI World Cycling Centre’s women’s road team, the WCC Team. For the last seven years, this atypical UCI Women’s Continental Team has been providing young women from the world over the chance to race in high-level races across Europe.For 2026, the multi-national team will develop under the guidance of Valentina Scandolara.
The 10 young women making up the 2026 roster come from as many countries: Afghanistan, Algeria, Benin, Chile, Colombia, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Rwanda, Switzerland and Ukraine. They arrive in Aigle between now and the beginning of February before a training camp in Calpe, Spain, to be followed by a season of training and racing in Europe then, for some, participation in the UCI Road World Championships in Montréal, Canada, in September.
Their new coach says: “I’d seen the team at races previous years, and last summer, I worked with them for a while in France. I really like the concept of this team, especially as there are so many nationalities, which you rarely encounter in cycling. I had the pleasure of leading the WCC Team last year at the Tour de Charente-Maritime Féminin in France, and it was enriching to hear their stories. It’s a unique project that I’m really happy to be part of. And I’ve always liked passing on my passion to other people.”
Experience helping young talent
So much so, that the dynamic 35-year-old, who is a certified UCI coach and Sport Director (DS), created the Down Under Cycling Academy for young Australian and New Zealand riders three years ago. Based near Verona, Italy, the Academy provides a European training and racing base for talented young riders from these two countries (as of last year also from Canada and Israel, and counting!), where races are few and the pelotons small. Scandolara identified the need for such a project during her years in Australia both as a rider with Orica-AIS (now Liv AlUla Jayco) in 2014-2015 and as a DS. She draws parallels between the aims of the Academy and of the WCC Team, both of which place emphasis on the European racing culture.
“You can teach riders all the theory and give them training practice, but they need to learn in real race situations, when they’re under pressure with people around them braking and elbowing them. It needs to be experienced. It’s not easy for riders who learn to race in a group of 15 to 20, to move into bigger categories and find themselves in the middle of 200 riders on a three-metre wide road!”.
“I’m looking forward to seeing them progress. It’s very motivating to work with riders who don’t yet have a lot of European experience, because they’re like sponges and you can make a big difference in their progress. As I’ve seen with the Down Under Cycling Academy riders, real progress already shows after the first weeks. That really motivates me.”
The mind game
The WCC Team coach is also very conscious of the importance of what’s going on in the riders’ minds. The university graduate in psychology explains: “Cycling is a team sport played by individuals. The team must work to allow one rider to take the glory and the points. Teamwork is necessary to deliver results, but not everyone’s name appears in the results at the end. Even though there is better exposure now so people can see your work, it’s still not the same as a football team where you say ‘we won’. So, the dynamics in a team are really important.
Emotional intelligence, understanding themselves and others, and giving back when the time is right, is very important to keep a team together. I don’t think this aspect is considered enough when teams choose riders for their rosters.”
She also wants to ensure her riders don’t make the same mistakes she did, especially when it comes to over-training. She will draw on her practical and academic experience to guide the WCC Team to the highest level possible.
“I think it helps to have been an athlete because you can understand what it’s like when the legs are screaming and your head isn’t working, and maybe you’re not listening to what they’re saying from the car because you’re in your own stress situation and your internal dialogue is wrong. This sort of situation obviously needs to be addressed and discussed after the race or training session, but in the right way and with due understanding of the many dynamics that can be happening inside each person.”
Scandolara understands, but that doesn’t mean she is a push over when it comes to expectations from her riders!
“I’ve had instances [as a coach and DS] when I’ve had to tell riders to pick themselves up, put the effort in and go for it. It’s hard. But if the riders aren’t hard on themselves and their coaches aren’t hard on them, cycling will be hard on them. You need resilience and the internal motivation to really want it. Cycling isn’t just a game. It’s a sport. And it’s a hard one!”
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