"Christophe still has a chance to do a good GC" - Positive start to Laporte and Visma at 2024 Tour de Luxembourg
Cycling
Racing for the first time since losing the European champion's jersey, Christophe Laporte impressed on a tough start to the opening stage of the 2024 Tour de Luxembourg, finishing second in an uphill sprint to Mathieu van der Poel.
“We are happy about today,” assessed Team Visma | Lease a Bike's team manager Maarten Wynants in a post-stage 1 reflection the team's official website. “The intention was to sprint with Laporte, and we succeeded. A dangerous leading group got the space, but with Tosh Van der Sande regularly in the lead, we were able to close the gap. Unfortunately, Christophe then faced a strong Mathieu van der Poel in the sprint.”
More than just for Laporte however, it was a strong team performance from Team Visma | Lease a Bike on the opening stage. “With three riders in the top ten, we have a good perspective for the general classification,” Wynants continued. "Bart Lemmen and Wilco Kelderman already rode strongly today despite being at the start in Canada last weekend. With the time trial and difficult stages still to come, things are looking good. Also, Christophe still has a chance to do a good GC.”
One of those mentioned there, Lemmen, also shared his thoughts to the team post-stage. “Somehow I expected to have good legs, but it's nice that I can show it in a strong field," he evaluates. "We now have three riders well placed in the general classification, and there are still some nice stages coming up where there are opportunities.”
2024 Tour de Luxembourg GC after stage 1:
| 1 | VAN DER POEL Mathieu | Alpecin - Deceuninck | 5 | 10″ | 3:46:18 |
| 2 | LAPORTE Christophe | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 6″ | 0:04 | |
| 3 | KRON Andreas | Lotto Dstny | 4″ | 0:06 | |
| 4 | HIRSCHI Marc | UAE Team Emirates | 1″ | 0:09 | |
| 5 | LEMMEN Bart | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 0:10 | ||
| 6 | FISHER-BLACK Finn | UAE Team Emirates | ,, | ||
| 7 | TIBERI Antonio | Bahrain - Victorious | ,, | ||
| 8 | KELDERMAN Wilco | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | ,, | ||
| 9 | GUERREIRO Ruben | Movistar Team | ,, | ||
| 10 | BARRENETXEA Jon | Movistar Team | ,, |
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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🇱🇺 #SkodaTour It's about time for stage ✌️in Luxembourg. 😄 Follow the race in our liveblog: teamvismaleaseabike.com/liveblog/liveb…
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