"The crowds will grant me extra power": French breakaway artist Veistroffer hopes to pull off a magic trick at his debut Tour
CyclingWednesday, 01 July 2026 at 03:00
Baptiste Veistroffer may not be the biggest name in the world of cycling, but if you follow races closely, you almost had to run across the 26-year-old Frenchman's one of many breakaways. Just this season, he's been a part of 12 escaped groups. And even managed to take his first professional win at Tour of Oman.
Yet four years ago, Veistroffer had only just taken his baby steps in cycling sphere after being recruited by Breton amateur team VC Pays de Loudéac. Despite no cycling background, the engineer building ships for the French Navy caught interest of local scouts thanks to his raw power. And now in his second professonal season, Veistroffer is heading to the Tour de France.
"I still sometimes can't believe it," he admitted to Domestique. "If you know my past, like I started cycling as a pro three years ago, and four years ago I started cycling, and in four years I'm riding the Tour de France. It's crazy."
It did not take long for his talents to be recognized first by AG2R (now Decathlon), where Veistroffer took up a traineeship in 2023 and was later recruited for the Development team in 2024. From there a direct path lead to Lotto-Intermarché.
Nothing is impossible
Regarding his Grand Tour debut, the goal of Veistroffer is clear; to be in the center of attention as much as possible with multiple breakaway adventures. And who knows, perhaps a result will come out of these many attempts.
"The goal is to take many breakaways," he explained. "The big goal can be to win a stage. I already know it's not impossible."
In search of that success, Veistroffer will rely on the support of home fans: "I will use this crowd to support and to have extra power," he noted.
Fair Seixas
Whilst Veistroffer will attempt to steal the spotlight, it's guaranteed to be aimed at his countryman Paul Seixas. The 19-year-old prodigy is making his Grand Tour debut with podium ambitions.
Of course, Veistroffer is familiar with Seixas on personal level through his brief stint at Decathlon, but the two have also met each other a couple times in the peloton. What does he think of the French cycling's "golden boy"?
"He's really friendly, open discussion, cool, and also he's sometimes rude about himself, but he's fair," the 26-year-old gave a fair asseessment of his compatriot.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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