Victor Lafay for a better second season with Decathlon AG2R: "I finished in good shape in 2024, so I will be able to resume 2025 with confidence and above all desire"
Cycling
Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale had maybe the best season in its long team history during 2024. The team rose from mediocrity to challenge some of the world's biggest teams and that was even without their star signing Victor Lafay. Injury haunted the 28-year-old Frenchman for a long time but eventually, he was able to make his way back and even started at the Vuelta in August.
"The goal is to win races," Lafay makes the layout of plans for 2025 rather simple in an interview wtih Cyclism'Actu. "It's not to score points, but if we win races, we score points. I think it's a good calculation, because if we run after points, we don't run after victory. And there you go, I think we must not lose this identity."
He then continues to highlight that with the arrival of Decathlon, the French team massively stepped up this year: "The team really took the right turn precisely in 2024 by winning 30 races. So we must continue on this, on this dynamic. Victories call for victories; behind, it creates a good state of mind and emulation in the team. So normally, if we win races, we will have points and we will be good."
Lafay himself had to sit out the first half of 2024 due to a knee injury contracted at one of the pre-season camps. His return to racing in July was mainly about the getting the vibe going and only secondary were the results: "It's clear that there was a lot of frustration last year. But then, I stayed positive and told myself that it was going to work out, that I was going to solve the problem. The team really supported me throughout my injury. And also for the recovery, they trusted me to go to La Vuelta."
"For me, doing La Vuelta was very important for 2025, to keep a good volume of cycling over the season. I think I can approach the next season with confidence. I finished in good shape in 2024, so I will be able to resume 2025 with confidence and above all desire, a lot of desire."
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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