British champion Zoe Backstedt has been selected to ride in her inaugural Tour de France Femmes. The 21-year-old Welsh rider, representing Canyon-SRAM, has emerged as one of the team's standout performers and will support Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney in her quest for a second title.

The Tour kicks off in Lausanne, Switzerland on 1 August. Backstedt expressed her excitement last month, stating that participating in the Tour would be "incredible" and that she felt "goosebumps" at the thought of it.

Her selection comes on the heels of a remarkable June, where she clinched both the British road race and time trial titles, alongside a sprint stage victory at the Tour de Suisse Femmes. Last week, she also successfully defended her title at the 2026 Baloise Ladies Tour, a year after making history as the youngest winner of the event.

Cycling runs in the Backstedt family, as she is not the first to compete in the Tour de France. Her father, Magnus, participated in the prestigious Grand Tour seven times from 1998 to 2008, even winning a stage during his debut. Additionally, her older sister Elynor rides professionally for UAE Team ADQ, while her mother, Meg, is a former British road race champion.

Reflecting on her family's cycling legacy, Backstedt remarked, "It really runs in the family to be a cyclist. We always had the choice to go into different sports, but everything just led towards cycling, and, in the end, I'm so happy that I pursued it."