“A few months ago, I’d never have believed this would happen” – Christophe Laporte ends nightmare 2025 season on a high with Tour of Holland GC win

After a nightmare season that had threatened to derail his whole career, Christophe Laporte has triumphantly brought his 2025 campaign to a redemptive close by winning the overall classification at the Tour of Holland — his first victory since returning to action from a debilitating mid-season illness.

The Frenchman, who missed almost the entire spring after contracting cytomegalovirus, admitted that even he had doubts about whether he’d reach this point. “It’s my first victory of the year after a tough season,” he said at the finish in Etten-Leur. “If you’d told me a few months ago this would happen, I wouldn’t have believed you.”

Laporte’s 2025 campaign was effectively split in two. The spring Classics — his usual hunting ground — were wiped from the calendar by illness, and his summer comeback was slow to gather momentum. Yet in the Netherlands, he showed the patience and resilience that have long defined his career, combining consistency and experience to claim overall victory in the final stage race of the European season. “I’m happy to end the year with a win,” he said. “I’m pleased with my form. The team did an amazing job — it was a difficult race to control.”

His Team Visma | Lease a Bike squad played an instrumental role throughout the week, guiding him through crosswinds, tight time gaps, and aggressive racing on local circuits. In the final kilometres of the closing stage, Laporte even put in a late effort on the front of the peloton to assist team sprinter Olav Kooij, underlining his trademark selflessness. “We wanted to win the sprint,” Laporte explained. “There was still a strong group ahead, and I tried to close the gap, but unfortunately it wasn’t possible.”

The overall win marked the perfect response to months of frustration — and a reminder of Laporte’s enduring class. Now, with the curtain closing on the 2025 season, the 32-year-old plans a well-earned break before turning his focus to 2026.

“I’m going to enjoy my holidays,” he smiled. “It’s been a hard year. I want to start the new season after a good winter of training, and I’m already looking forward to next year.”

For Laporte and Team Visma | Lease a Bike, the Tour of Holland provided not just a trophy, but reassurance — proof that persistence, even through the hardest months, can still end in triumph.