Cycling, Laporte breaks silence after absence from races: "I have Cytomegalovirus"

Rome, March 25, 2025 – When you are absent for too long and without giving explanations either personally or at team level, the rumors follow one another and end up touching on many different options of various kinds. The silence of Christophe Laporte, perhaps also for this reason, was interrupted in these hours, when for the first time a reason for his disappearance in this first period of the season arrived.

Laporte's statements

Sidelined since last October, the Frenchman has finally revealed why after his exit just a few days ago Visma-Lease a Bike had entrenched herself behind privacy and respect for it, instead fueling the flurry of hypotheses that today has a name and an end. "In January, shortly before leaving for altitude training, I began to feel unwell. Subsequent tests confirmed that I have the Cytomegalovirus. Since then I have started a long journey that has led me to have to live the situation day by day. The most frustrating part of all this is that you never know when you will heal completely: if it were a broken bone things would be different, but not like this and mentally it is tough". For the former European champion, the not particularly fortunate period actually seems to have started much further back. "It is already the second spring in a row in which I have to skip the Classics and this is very disheartening. But now I've come to terms with it: now all I can do is rest and wait until I get better". This applies to the Frenchman but also to his Visma-Lease a Bike, also deprived of the best Wout van aert, expected to return to the race in the near future. The rising stars benefit from this double absence Olav Kooij e Matthew Brennan, fresh from a beautiful feat at the first stage of the Volta a Catalunya 2025.

Fem Van Empel takes a break

Moving on to Visma-Lease to Bike Women, the decision of another very young girl has caused an uproar Fem Van Empel to take a temporary break from cycling, both on the road and as a cyclocrosser, with the reasons given in a post on his Instagram page: mental health and its legitimate protection are involved, and it is not exactly the first time that this has happened to young people who have just entered the world of professional cycling. "In recent years I have undertaken an incredible journey, winning three world and European titles at the highest level of cyclocross. This has required a lot of daily commitment and dedication. At the moment I am facing new challenges. After discussing it with my team - continues the Dutchman - we have decided that taking a break is the best thing for my mental health and well-being. I will focus on recovery, to come back stronger than before".