Clodagh Finn: Female cycling pioneers were told they risked ‘bicycle face’, but time has not removed barriers

Alfonsina Strada is still the only woman to have taken part in the Giro d’Italia although, happily, a new generation of female professional cyclists are breaking through the many obstacles to shine nationally and internationally

The only woman to ever take part in the Giro d'Italia men's race was Alfonsina Strada.

If a woman was brave — and foolish — enough to get on a bike a little over a century ago, she was in danger of developing “bicycle face”.

Bicycle face? Yes, that awful condition which brought a ruddy flush to the cheeks and a strained expression to the muscles of the face.