Riders at the Tour de France Femmes are undergoing checks for padded bras before Tuesday's individual time trial, after the Union Cycliste Internationale warned teams it would strictly enforce rules banning clothing that alters a rider's body shape.
Each cyclist must report to a dedicated tent 10 minutes before her start in Gevrey-Chambertin for inspection. The UCI told teams that commissaires will look specifically for padded undergarments designed to increase chest surface area for an aerodynamic advantage. Multiple teams suspect rivals have already used such padding in earlier time trials, and Bert Blocken, an aerodynamics professor at Heriot-Watt University, said the practice could yield decisive seconds over a 20- to 30-kilometre course.
The 21-kilometre race to Dijon falls on the fourth stage of the event. Norway's Sigrid Haugset, winner of Monday's third stage in Poligny, starts in the yellow jersey.