# Christophe Laporte

Christophe Laporte (French: ; born 11 December 1992) is a French professional cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam Visma–Lease a Bike. A sprinter and classics rider, Laporte has taken more than 30 victories during his professional career, including wins in 2023 at Gent–Wevelgem, Dwars door Vlaanderen and the road race at the UEC European Road Championships. He has also won a stage at the 2022 Tour de France, a silver medal in the road race at the 2022 UCI Road World Championships and a bronze medal in the road race at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

## Career

Born in La Seyne-sur-Mer, Laporte rode for the VS Hyérois and AVC Aix-en-Provence teams as an amateur. In 2012, he rode for UCI Continental team La Pomme Marseille as a stagiaire, and the following year, he won a silver medal in the road race at the Mediterranean Games.

### Cofidis (2014–2021)
#### 2014–2017

Laporte turned professional with the Cofidis team in 2014, with his best result in his first season with the team being a sixth-place finish at La Roue Tourangelle. The following year, and after third-place finishes at Le Samyn and the Grand Prix de Wallonie, Laporte took his first professional victory at October's Tour de Vendée, winning a bunch sprint in La Roche-sur-Yon. Laporte also made his first start at the Tour de France, with his best result being a seventh-place finish on stage fifteen.
At the 2016 Tour de France, Laporte was expected to support Nacer Bouhanni in the sprints, however Bouhanni was ruled out of the race due to an injury suffered in a hotel altercation prior to the French National Road Race Championships. Laporte went on to take six top-ten stage finishes at the race, with his best being fifth on two occasions. He was involved in an altercation with Asbjørn Kragh Andersen at the Tour du Poitou-Charentes, with both riders being penalised one minute in the general classification and fined 200 Swiss francs. The following year, he repeated his Tour de Vendée victory – this time with a solo attack, 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) from the finish in La Roche-sur-Yon.

#### 2018

At the end of the 2017 season, Cédric Vasseur replaced Yvon Sanquer [fr] as Cofidis general manager, and with this management change, Laporte had a breakout 2018 season. In his first two starts of the season, Laporte won a stage and finished second overall at the Étoile de Bessèges, before winning two stages and the points classification at the Tour La Provence. He finished within the lead group, in fourth place, at Gent–Wevelgem, before taking his fourth win of the season at Tro-Bro Léon, attacking 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) from the finish in Lannilis. At May's Tour of Belgium, Laporte won the third stage – a 10.6-kilometre (6.6-mile) individual time trial – and assumed the overall race lead, before ceding it the next day.
Laporte then won a stage at the Tour de Luxembourg the following week, and as a result, he was chosen as the main sprinter for Cofidis for the Tour de France, ahead of Nacer Bouhanni. His best result at the race was a runner-up finish to Arnaud Démare on stage 18 in Pau. He was selected for the French team to ride at the UEC European Championships in Glasgow, but failed to finish the race. His best results over the remainder of the season were second place at the Grand Prix d'Isbergues in September, and third place at Paris–Bourges in October.

#### 2019–2021

Laporte started the 2019 season with the overall victory at the Étoile de Bessèges, along with two stage victories and the points classification. After a lean spring which saw no further victories, Laporte's next victories came at June's Tour de Luxembourg, when he won the opening prologue and stage one. He held the race lead for a further day before withdrawing from the race on the penultimate day due to illness. Having withdrawn from the Tour de France prior to the first rest day, on stage eight, Laporte took his second general classification win of the year at the Tour Poitou-Charentes en Nouvelle-Aquitaine, where he also won three stages. Towards the end of the season, Laporte recorded second-place finishes at the Duo Normand two-man team time trial event – with Anthony Perez – and the Tour de Vendée, as well as a third-place finish at the Grand Prix d'Isbergues. With the 2020 season largely effected by the COVID-19 pandemic, Laporte went winless, as his best finish of the year was a fourth-place stage finish on stage seven at the Tour de France.
Laporte started the 2021 season with a block of racing in France, which included a stage win and the points classification at the Étoile de Bessèges. He finished second at Dwars door Vlaanderen, leading home the peloton behind solo winner Dylan van Baarle, and it was not until May and the Circuit de Wallonie for Laporte to take his second win of the season. He was designated as the main sprinter for Cofidis at the Tour de France, however his best stage result at the race came on stage 19 – second behind Matej Mohorič – when he featured as part of the breakaway. Following the Tour de France, Laporte won the opening stage of August's Tour du Limousin and the Grand Prix de Wallonie one-day race in September, before taking his first top-ten finish at one of the cycling monuments with sixth at Paris–Roubaix in October.

### Team Jumbo–Visma (2022–present)

After eight years with Cofidis, Laporte signed an initial two-year contract to join Team Jumbo–Visma from the 2022 season.

#### 2022

Having taken an eighth-place finish in his first start at Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne, Laporte took his first victory for the team – and his first win at UCI World Tour level – on the opening stage of Paris–Nice; Laporte capitalised on the tempo set by teammate Nathan Van Hooydonck on the Côte de Breuil-Bois-Robert, bringing Wout van Aert and Primož Roglič with him and the Team Jumbo–Visma trio worked together to hold off the peloton on the final 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) into Mantes-la-Ville. At the E3 Saxo Bank Classic, Laporte and Van Aert again found themselves in an attacking move, having dropped their rivals on the Paterberg with around 40 kilometres (25 miles) left; they remained clear into Harelbeke, with Van Aert ultimately winning in the driekleur trikot. Two days later, Laporte forced the decisive move at Gent–Wevelgem, attacking with 24 kilometres (15 miles) remaining with three other riders; the quartet stayed clear at the front, where Laporte was outsprinted to the finish line by Biniam Girmay. With Van Aert testing positive for COVID-19 prior to the Tour of Flanders, Laporte was one of the team's joint-leaders along with Tiesj Benoot, and ultimately finished in ninth place.
At the Tour de France, Laporte was a key part of Van Aert's sprint lead-outs that would ultimately result in Van Aert taking the points classification at the race. Having taken a third-place stage finish on stage four, Laporte also spent stages ten and eleven in breakaways and was involved in some of the pace-making on the latter, that resulted in teammate Jonas Vingegaard definitively taking the yellow jersey. Laporte would ultimately take a stage victory, on stage 19, jumping across to the breakaway in the closing kilometres and pushed on during the uphill sprint in Cahors, beating Jasper Philipsen to the line. He then won the Danmark Rundt, winning the final stage of the race to overhaul Magnus Sheffield for the general classification, and he also won the points classification. Having been selected for the French team for the road race at the UCI Road World Championships in Australia, Laporte led home the sprint behind the winner Remco Evenepoel, taking the silver medal as a result. He concluded his season with victory at Binche–Chimay–Binche, having attacked with Rasmus Tiller with approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) remaining, before dropping Tiller in the closing stages.

#### 2023

Having finished third in his first start of the season at February's Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Laporte won two consecutive starts in four days the following month. At Gent–Wevelgem, Wout van Aert and Laporte attacked on the Kemmelberg with 52 kilometres (32 miles) remaining, staying clear of the field into Wevelgem – but unlike the previous year's E3 Saxo Bank Classic, it was Laporte that prevailed for France's first win at the race since Philippe Gaumont in 1997. Laporte then won Dwars door Vlaanderen after a late solo attack from the lead group that he had bridged to a couple of kilometres earlier. After a tenth-place finish at Paris–Roubaix – following two punctures, including one suffered on the Trouée d'Arenberg – Laporte signed a three-year contract extension with Team Jumbo–Visma, extending his contract until the end of the 2026 season. In his final start in preparation for the Tour de France, Laporte took the opening stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné after catching Rune Herregodts, the sole remaining breakaway rider, just before the line in Chambon-sur-Lac. Having held the leader's jersey through the next stage of the race, Laporte then won the third stage in a sprint finish in Le Coteau. He would ultimately cede the jersey following the fourth stage, an individual time trial, but held onto the points classification lead for the remainder of the race.
At the Tour de France, Laporte played a part in a second consecutive overall victory for Jonas Vingegaard, with his best individual stage finish being sixth on stage nineteen when he was part of the breakaway. Following his silver medal in 2022, Laporte was seen to be a leading contender for the road race at the UCI Road World Championships in Scotland, but he did not finish. After a sixth-place finish at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec the following month, Laporte then won the road race at the UEC European Road Championships, managing to fend off a small group of riders – including trade teammates Van Aert and Olav Kooij – following a 12-kilometre (7.5-mile) solo move in Drenthe. He then completed the season with three top-six finishes at the Famenne Ardenne Classic (fourth), the Münsterland Giro (fifth) and Paris–Tours (sixth). For his performances in 2023, Laporte was the winner of the Vélo d'Or français as the best French road rider of the season and received the Trophée Bernard Hinault in October.

#### 2024

Laporte started the season with three top-ten finishes in his first three starts, with a best of fourth at Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne, but was ruled out of attempting to defend his 2023 victory at Gent–Wevelgem. Laporte was drafted into Visma–Lease a Bike's Giro d'Italia team – to make his first start at the race – working as a lead-out rider for Olav Kooij, following injuries suffered by Wout van Aert during the spring classics. Laporte abandoned the race prior to the eighth stage, with Kooij following suit prior to stage ten. Following the Tour de France, Laporte formed part of the France team for the road race at the Paris Olympics. With compatriot Valentin Madouas in front, Laporte remained within a small group that would ultimately contest the bronze medal behind Remco Evenepoel and Madouas. Laporte won the sprint to claim the bronze medal, as Madouas and Laporte took France's first medals in the event since Arnaud Geyre's silver medal in 1956.

## Career achievements
### Major results

Source:

#### 2012

    1st Stage 2 Tour de Moselle
    5th Road race, National Under-23 Road Championships

#### 2013

    1st Stage 3 Tour de la Manche
    2nd Road race, Mediterranean Games
    5th Road race, Jeux de la Francophonie
    6th La Côte Picarde
    7th Gran Premio Industrie del Marmo

#### 2014

    6th La Roue Tourangelle

#### 2015 (1 pro win)

    1st Tour de Vendée
    3rd Le Samyn
    3rd Grand Prix de Wallonie
    9th Overall Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen

#### 2016

    6th Paris–Bourges

#### 2017 (1)

    1st Tour de Vendée
    5th Paris–Bourges
    7th Overall Étoile de Bessèges
    8th Overall Danmark Rundt

#### 2018 (6)

    1st Tro-Bro Léon
    Tour La Provence
       1st Points classification
       1st Stages 1 & 3
    1st Stage 1 Tour de Luxembourg
    1st Stage 3 (ITT) Tour of Belgium
    2nd Overall Étoile de Bessèges
       1st Stage 2
    2nd Grand Prix d'Isbergues
    3rd Paris–Bourges
    4th Gent–Wevelgem
    5th Grand Prix de Fourmies

#### 2019 (9)

    1st Overall Tour Poitou-Charentes en Nouvelle-Aquitaine
       1st Stages 1, 2 & 4 (ITT)
    1st Overall Étoile de Bessèges
       1st Points classification
       1st Stages 2 & 4 (ITT)
    Tour de Luxembourg
       1st Prologue & Stage 1
    2nd Tour de Vendée
    2nd Duo Normand (with Anthony Perez)
    3rd Grand Prix d'Isbergues
    6th Grand Prix de Wallonie
    9th Dwars door Vlaanderen

#### 2021 (4)

    1st Grand Prix de Wallonie
    1st Circuit de Wallonie
    Étoile de Bessèges
       1st Points classification
       1st Stage 1
    1st Stage 1 Tour du Limousin
    2nd Dwars door Vlaanderen
    5th Time trial, National Road Championships
    6th Paris–Roubaix
    7th Eschborn–Frankfurt
    9th Tro-Bro Léon

#### 2022 (5)

    1st Overall Danmark Rundt
       1st Points classification
       1st Stage 5
    1st Binche–Chimay–Binche
    1st Stage 19 Tour de France
    1st Stage 1 Paris–Nice
    2nd Road race, UCI Road World Championships
    2nd E3 Saxo Bank Classic
    2nd Gent–Wevelgem
    8th Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne
    9th Tour of Flanders

#### 2023 (5)

    1st Road race, UEC European Road Championships
    1st Gent–Wevelgem
    1st Dwars door Vlaanderen
    Critérium du Dauphiné
       1st Points classification
       1st Stages 1 & 3
    3rd Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
    4th Famenne Ardenne Classic
    5th Münsterland Giro
    6th Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec
    6th Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne
    6th Paris–Tours
    10th Paris–Roubaix

#### 2024 (1)

    1st Paris–Tours
    3rd Road race, Olympic Games
    3rd Elfstedenrace
    4th Overall Renewi Tour
    4th Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne
    5th Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
    9th Road race, UEC European Road Championships
    10th Strade Bianche

#### Grand Tour general classification results timeline

| Grand Tour | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| Giro d'Italia | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | DNF |
| Tour de France | 127 | 157 | 133 | 124 | DNF | 107 | 91 | 74 | 80 | 84 |
| Vuelta a España | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career |

#### Classics results timeline

| Monument | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| Milan–San Remo | — | 129 | 85 | 30 | 13 | 61 | 102 | 22 | 22 | 13 | DNF |
| Tour of Flanders | — | — | — | DNF | DNF | DNF | 82 | 11 | 9 | 14 | — |
| Paris–Roubaix | 103 | — | 20 | 39 | 68 | 33 | NH | 6 | DNF | 10 | 25 |
| Liège–Bastogne–Liège | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career |
| Giro di Lombardia | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career | Has not contested during his career |
| Classic | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| Omloop Het Nieuwsblad | — | DNF | 91 | DNF | — | 31 | — | 13 | — | 3 | 5 |
| Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne | — | DNF | — | 85 | — | — | — | 76 | 8 | 6 | 4 |
| Strade Bianche | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 10 |
| E3 Harelbeke | — | — | — | — | — | DNF | NH | — | 2 | 23 | — |
| Gent–Wevelgem | — | DNF | DNF | 15 | 4 | 39 | DNF | 78 | 2 | 1 | — |
| Dwars door Vlaanderen | — | DNF | 16 | 49 | 16 | 9 | NH | 2 | — | 1 | — |
| Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not held | Not held | 39 | 6 | — |
| Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not held | Not held | 75 | 28 | — |
| Paris–Tours | DNF | 44 | 112 | DNF | 72 | — | — | 54 | 39 | 6 | 1 |

#### Major championships timeline

| Event | Event | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| Olympic Games | Road race | Not held | Not held | Not held | — | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held | — | Not held | Not held | 3 |
| World Championships | Road race | — | — | — | DNF | — | — | DNF | — | DNF | 2 | DNF | |
| European Championships | Road race | Race did not exist | Race did not exist | Race did not exist | — | — | DNF | — | — | — | — | 1 | 9 |
| National Championships | Road race | — | 88 | DNF | DNF | 48 | 17 | 30 | 7 | DNF | — | — | 18 |
| National Championships | Time trial | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | — | — | — |
Legend :
| — | Did not compete |
| DNF | Did not finish |
| IP | In progress |
| NH | Not held |

### Awards

In October 2023, Laporte was announced as the winner of the Vélo d'Or français as the best French road rider of the season and received the Trophée Bernard Hinault.