I have a strong, inspiring, and professional group of women around me with Boels-Dolmans. We race and train incredibly hard as a team.

The UCI have to make the decision to put in rules into women's cycling that they have in men's cycling: you know, like a minimum budget to run a women's team and that sort of thing so that it becomes more professional.

There are lots of things that could be done. We could get more help from the UCI, like forcing Pro-Tour teams to have a women's equivalent.

As a female athlete, I think it's really important to stand up on a podium and represent females and what we're capable of, and I always try to make political statements with what I do rather than with headlines.

If I miss anything about the sport, it's the camaraderie of old teammates.

I said, 'If I don't play football for a living, I'm going to get into show business.'

For many children, the sport they do is because that is the one that was most available to them.

I used to play football all the time. In the U.S., people don't play football, so I had to learn basketball. Looking back, that's what I like about my life - doing new things, having a new perspective.