Sander SteinsWhen I speak with people about cycling in my home country, Netherlands, women’s cycling is rarely mentioned. Despite the many successes of recent years this situation has not meaningfully changed. Even with a strong presence of top-level Dutch female athletes, the number of women’s races in the Netherlands continues to decline.
Media coverage reflects a similar inconsistency. One of the country’s largest news outlets alternates between strong reporting and near absence, offering coverage that feels fragmented rather than committed. As a result, women’s cycling is often presented as a secondary addition, rather than a sport worthy of consistent attention in its own right.
While leading teams have significantly improved their online marketing and media presence, relying heavily on social media carries its own risks. Visibility is dictated by algorithms beyond one’s control, often limiting content to the same relatively small audience. Furthermore, social media tends to be uniform and fleeting… important, perhaps, but arguably overvalued in recent years.
Personally, for the moment I am able to attend only a limited number of races. Fortunately, many events can be followed via livestreams, although coverage is often incomplete… frequently restricted to the final hour. Still, it remains better than no access at all.
My own interest lies primarily in capturing the emotional landscape surrounding the sport: the tension before a race, the release afterward, the chaos beyond the line and the human moments in between. To me these are powerful and compelling subjects. While action photography is undeniably striking, it is also a field in which many photographers already excel at an exceptional level.
Looking ahead, I intend to write more about women’s cycling. In my view, it continues to receive far too little attention. There is space for a broader range of perspectives -particularly independent and different voices- in a landscape often shaped by sponsors and commercial interests.
Currently, I am preparing to launch a cycling zine… small, independent, and engaged. Its aim is not to replicate traditional news coverage, but to highlight the deeper value of women’s cycling and advocate for the visibility, audience, and recognition it deserves. While the project is still in its early stages, my background as a professional artist and photographer ultimately leads me to one conclusion: it is time to take action!
