Demi Vollering Fined by UCI for Peeing in Public in Tour de France Femmes Sanction Overdrive

Demi Vollering and two of her teammates were fined by the UCI for peeing in public on Friday at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift

And they were only three of many who fell victim to a regulation crackdown on Friday’s hotly hyped 7th stage to Mont Ventoux.

UCI commissaires issued a total of 2,200 CHF ($2,700 USD) in fines across 15 separate offenses on the “queen stage” of the race. That’s a long naughty list that made Friday the most heavily regulated stage of the race so far.

Only the stage 1 sanction crackdown rivals the volume of misdemeanors spotted by eagle-eyed officials on Friday.

Vollering and her FDJ United-Suez domestiques Célia Gery and Juliette Berthet were hit with 100 CHF fines for “unseemly or inappropriate behavior – urinating in public.”

Five riders and five corresponding team DSs were slapped with similar loose-change sanctions for “sticky bottles.”

Gravel ace Rosa Klöser and an FDJ Suez sport director were also caught out by UCI commissaires on Friday’s stage across Provence.

Full details can be found below.

Pee problems in the pro peloton

Mid-race nature breaks became problematic for the men’s and women’s peloton this season.

There was a full pee-gate controversy at the men’s Giro d’Italia that later trickled across to the Giro Women.

Racers told Velo’s Andy McGrath at the men’s Tour de France that it was becoming increasingly difficult to find the opportunity to pull over for a “nature break.”

There’s rarely the right moment as crowd sizes and racing intensity increase by the year at the biggest bike race in the world.

Clothing logistics make mid-race pee breaks exponentially more complicated in the women’s peloton.

Velo understands there have been complaints on a riders’ WhatsApp group this week of athletes letting loose in their bibs as a quick but soggy workaround.

The huge crowds that came out to watch the race take on Mont Ventoux on Friday no doubt heightened problems for riders with brimming bladders.

Stage 7 was the first time that jurors caught riders taking mid-race pee breaks at this Tour de France Femmes.

Charlotte Kool loses battle with Ventoux time cut

Also Friday, Charlotte Kool missed the time cut at the summit of Mont Ventoux and was booted from the race.

The Dutch sprinter crossed the line 55:55 back on stage-winner Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney, little more than three minutes behind the 52:35 time limit.

Kool’s late finish wrapped up a stage that saw three-non-starters. Anna van der Breggen, Kiara Lylyk, and Katrine Aalerud abandoned before the stage rolled out.

UCI sanctions: Tour de France Femmes stage 7

Article 2.12.007-4.9: Irregular assistance of a rider within the same team
24- KLÖSER Maria Rosa – CANYON//SRAM

Article 2.12.007-4.11: Irregular feeding (“sticky bottle” for a short distance, etc.)
37- SQUIBAN Maeva – UAE TEAM L’IMAD
114- KOREVAAR Jeanne – LIV-ALULA-JAYCO
125- GRIFFIN Mia – TEAM PICNIC POSTNL
132- FRANZ Heidi – ST MICHEL – PREFERENCE HOME – AUBER93
163- EISEN Malou – VOLKERWESSELS CYCLING TEAM
DS- COSNIER Léonard – ST MICHEL – PREFERENCE HOME – AUBER93
DS- KEMNA Rudi – TEAM PICNIC POSTNL
DS- PRIDHAM Chérie – UAE TEAM L’IMAD
DS- STROETINGA Wim – LIV-ALULA-JAYCO
DS- VAN WANROIJ Marieke – VOLKERWESSELS CYCLING TEAM

Article 2.12.007-8.1: Failing to respect the instructions of the commissaires.
DS- MAIRE Nicolas – FDJ UNITED – SUEZ – 10051744733

Article 2.12.007-8.6: Inappropriate behavior (urinating in public during the race)
11- VOLLERING Demi – FDJ UNITED – SUEZ
12- BERTHET Juliette – FDJ UNITED – SUEZ
13- GERY Célia – FDJ UNITED – SUEZ