Lizzie Deignan: 'I feel responsible to prove you can be both a pro rider and a mother'
The British former world champion will line up on home roads at the Yorkshire Worlds
Lizzie Deignan will be one of six British women dreaming of victory at a home Road World Championships. But, the 2015 world champion will be the only one hoping to double her tally on home roads, having grown up in Otley, 11 miles from the road race finish line in Harrogate.
"The UCI Road World Championships race route passes places that have really had a huge influence on my life," Deignan says, "the school I went to, the church where I got married, my parents’ garden with the finish-line in the town where my daughter Orla was born and where I’ll be living once I retire from competition.
>>> UCI Road World Championships 2019 in Yorkshire: routes, TV guides, start lists
"I feel extremely lucky to be experiencing all of this regardless of how the race goes as it will give me very special moments I will always remember."
Deignan returned to racing at the 2019 Amstel Gold Race, having climbed off after the 2017 Worlds in Bergen in order to have her daughter.
"It is still quite unusual for a women to come back at such a high level after a pregnancy. So I feel a sense of responsibility to prove to everyone that it is possible to reconcile the life of a sports person with motherhood."
The 30-year-old says that keeping up with the training has been the trickiest obstacle as she tries to return to her previous form where she was a prolific winner: "I have kept myself moving over all these months, even though I don’t think you could call it real training as such. But each and every day, I tried to listen to what my body was telling me and trained on the basis of what I was feeling in the moment."
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Deignan will form part of a strong British squad, alongside Lizzy Banks, Alice Barnes, Hannah Barnes, Nikki Juniper and Anna Henderson. They will be looking to upset a strong Dutch squad, which features three-time world champion Marianne Vos and 2018's winner Anna van der Breggen.
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Hi. I'm Cycling Weekly's Weekend Editor. I like writing offbeat features and eating too much bread when working out on the road at bike races.
Before joining Cycling Weekly I worked at The Tab and I've also written for Vice, Time Out, and worked freelance for The Telegraph (I know, but I needed the money at the time so let me live).
I also worked for ITV Cycling between 2011-2018 on their Tour de France and Vuelta a España coverage. Sometimes I'd be helping the producers make the programme and other times I'd be getting the lunches. Just in case you were wondering - Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen had the same ham sandwich every day, it was great.
-
TV coverage of a bike race can leave you with a strange impression of a country
TV footage is deceptive so choose your illusion wisely
By Michael Hutchinson Published
-
Mathieu van der Poel dominates in Leuven to win Gravel World Championships
The Dutchman adds another World Championship title to his palmarès as he solos to victory in the Flemish Brabant
By Joseph Lycett Published
-
Lizzie Deignan lights up Paris Olympics road race days after 'medical emergency'
Brit says she was 'really struggling today with pain' after finishing a valiant 12th
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Tarling, Finucane, Pidcock and more: Eight British riders to watch out for at the Paris Olympics
The cycling events start this weekend, we’ve picked out a handful of riders to keep an eye on in the French capital this summer
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Lizzie Deignan heads up Great Britain team for Tour of Britain Women
Elynor Bäckstedt, Elinor Barker and Anna Henderson also selected for six-rider strong squad
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Four weeks after breaking arm, Lizzie Deignan set to start La Vuelta Femenina
British rider to line up at eight-stage race on Sunday, less than a month on from crash at Tour of Flanders
By Adam Becket Published
-
'I've missed races I was peaking for, but there's plenty of time to be ready': Lizzie Deignan says broken arm won't derail Olympic goals
Deignan set to lead GB team at Tour of Britain Women and target the overall win as she builds for Paris games
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'I'll take time to recover then change direction': Lizzie Deignan looks to bounce back after suffering first fracture at Tour of Flanders
Deignan broke her arm during early crash in Sunday's race
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
‘I remember eating two pizzas and still being hungry’ - Elisa Longo Borghini on the ride that changed her
2022 Paris-Roubaix Femmes winner reflects back on her victory in the 2013 Trofeo Alfreda Binda
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Lizzie Deignan says uncertainty around Women's Tour future is 'frustrating' after promoter enters liquidation
Collapse of SweetSpot leaves race at risk of permanently vanishing
By Tom Thewlis Published