Amidst the bad news (crashes, illnesses), a bright spot for Visma | Lease a Bike and especially for Van Baarle
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Follow us on GoogleOn Thursday evening, the provisional start list for Omloop Het Nieuwsblad underwent a remarkable change. At Visma | Lease a Bike, Christophe Laporte's name was removed. As sports director Arthur van Dongen confirmed in the Tour of the Algarve, the French rider suffers from a serious illness. Dylan van Baarle is also still not participating in races, although he is expected to return.
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Visma | Lease a Bike's outsider, Laporte, was not expected to participate in races like the Tour of the Algarve or Oman, but he should be at altitude now. On Tenerife, Simon Yates, Victor Campenaerts, Matteo Jorgenson, Per Strand Hagenes, Edoardo Affini, Attila Valter, and Axel Zingle are currently training for the goals to come.
Laporte had already left. The Frenchman became so ill - Visma | Lease a Bike could not say exactly what was wrong - that further preparation for competitions proved impossible. "Christophe has been seriously ill," the team said. Sports director Arthur van Dongen called it a significant loss.'
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Also no Omloop Het Nieuwsblad for Van Baarle
Besides Laporte, Dylan van Baarle's opening weekend is too soon. The Dutch rider broke his collarbone in a crash in the Tour Down Under's opening stage, although he could resume training reasonably quickly afterward. "The main goals are not in the Algarve, for example, but in about five weeks," the sports director says, already setting his sights on the two significant events: the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.
Wout van Aert must do without two of his best helpers/backups during the opening weekend. "I expect guys like Matteo Jorgenson and Per Strand Hagenes, who are currently on altitude training, to come prepared," says Van Dongen, who, like the rest of the team, believes in the young Norwegian for this spring. "And we have several guys to fit in, but we are confident that we can make our mark as a team. We are going to give it our best shot."
Victor Campenaerts – who was set to start his season with Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne – and Niklas Behrens will replace Laporte and Van Baarle in the opener of the Belgian classics season. Edoardo Affini and Loe van Belle will join the team for Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. Visma | Lease a Bike will defend its titles from the past three years with Van Aert, Van Baarle, and Jan Tratnik.
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It remains unclear to what extent Laporte's illness will hinder him this spring
For Laporte himself, his new setback is certainly a big blow. Last year, the French rider missed a large part of the spring classics with stomach flu and a back injury, which Soren Kragh Andersen (Lidl-Trek) is also struggling with. "I hardly rode any cobbled classics last year. Only the Omloop and Paris-Roubaix. But I was not well prepared for the Hell of the North. My first goal is, therefore, to stay 100 percent healthy this spring so that I can make optimal use of my abilities," he recently told Sporza.
According to the team, it is unclear to what extent Laporte's illness will disrupt his remaining spring plans. The French rider was also scheduled for Strade Bianche and all the Flemish classics, including Paris-Roubaix.
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Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
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Latest Comments
- I’m still learning the calendar: is cyclocross mainly preparation for the spring classics, or does he race it as a separate goal as well? I’d love to see him back in the mud.jeremya04-11-2026
- The article makes it sound as if Roubaix is the only classic where he has a realistic shot. He’s been close in Flanders too, and one good tactical day can change everything.jennifer1904-11-2026
- Milan-Sanremo and Roubaix is a pretty special pair of Monuments. Any clues yet on which cyclocross races he’ll target?andrewf04-11-2026
- He’s right to be realistic about Flanders with Pogačar and Evenepoel around, but you can’t count Van Aert out on those roads. If he gets the right opportunity, he has the engine and experience to take it.davidm04-11-2026
- That Roubaix win felt like such a release after all the near-misses. Brilliant to hear that joy outweighed relief for Wout.patriciaw04-11-2026
- Why would a mountain time trial be different from a normal one? Is it just that the riders have to climb the whole course?samanthak03-11-2026
- I don’t quite buy the “fear of failure” argument. Riders can race the Giro and still have confidence in July; it comes down to recovery and planning, doesn’t it?patriciaw03-11-2026
- The Giro-Tour double is a massive ask, even for the very best. Pogačar made it look almost routine in 2024, but that’s hardly a sensible benchmark for everyone else!pedalpowe2903-11-2026
- Bakelants makes a fair point: if the 2027 Tour really suits Remco, he can’t afford to dilute the build-up. That 37km flat TT will be tempting, mind.julien03-11-2026
- Mont Blanc sounds like a spectacular finish, though four climbs on the final day might be a bit much after eight hard stages. Hope the route details are clear soon.raceready703-11-2026