Laurens De Plus will join Decathlon CMA CGM for the 2027 season after agreeing a two-year contract with the French WorldTour team. The Belgian leaves Netcompany INEOS after six seasons, becoming another experienced addition to a squad preparing to support the rapidly developing Paul Seixas.
The 31-year-old has completed eight Grand Tours and made 14 appearances in cycling’s Monuments, giving Decathlon another rider accustomed to the demands of three-week races and the toughest one-day events.
His arrival follows the announcements of Ben O’Connor and Pavel Sivakov, both of whom will join the French organisation in 2027. Together, the signings represent a substantial investment in climbing experience as Decathlon rebuild their squad following the departures of Felix Gall and Gregor Mühlberger to Lidl-Trek.
De Plus has previously raced for Quick-Step and Visma | Lease a Bike, before joining INEOS in 2021. Although he has spent much of his career working for team leaders, he has also recorded notable general classification results of his own.
Six seasons at INEOS come to an end
De Plus joined INEOS Grenadiers in 2021 after two years with Jumbo-Visma, bringing a reputation as a reliable climber and strong support rider in stage races.
His early seasons with the British team were disrupted by illness and injury, limiting his racing programme and making it difficult to reproduce the form he had shown before the transfer.
However, he returned to a prominent role during the 2023 Giro d’Italia, helping Geraint Thomas challenge for the overall victory.
Thomas eventually finished second behind Primož Roglič, while De Plus placed 10th overall. It was an impressive result for a rider whose responsibilities had largely centred on supporting his team leader through the mountains.
The performance demonstrated his ability to remain competitive deep into a Grand Tour while contributing to the wider team’s objectives.
In 2024, De Plus finished fifth overall at the Critérium du Dauphiné and 15th at the Tour de France, reinforcing his reputation as a dependable stage racer.
His 2025 season also produced encouraging results. He finished third overall at the Volta ao Algarve and sixth at the Volta a Catalunya, two races where strong climbing and consistent performances across several stages are essential.
The 2026 campaign proved more difficult. De Plus finished 29th overall at the Tour de Romandie and 50th at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, formerly the Critérium du Dauphiné. His results were some way below those of the previous two seasons.
Nevertheless, Decathlon have opted to recruit him for the experience accumulated throughout his career, rather than judging the signing solely on his most recent performances.
Photo Credit: GettyBinckBank Tour victory remains a career highlight
De Plus’s most important individual victory came at the 2019 BinckBank Tour, when he was riding for Jumbo-Visma.
The Belgian entered the final stage trailing Tim Wellens by 12 seconds in the general classification. Rather than accepting second place, he attacked during the demanding finale around Geraardsbergen.
De Plus escaped with Oliver Naesen and Greg Van Avermaet, leaving Wellens behind on the climbs before collecting additional bonus seconds.
Although Naesen won the stage, De Plus had done enough to secure the overall classification by 35 seconds.
The result remains an important demonstration of his racing ability. His success came not from waiting for a conventional summit finish, but from recognising an opportunity in a difficult one-day-style finale and committing to an aggressive move.
Earlier that season, he had also been part of Jumbo-Visma’s Tour de France team-time-trial victory.
Those achievements established him as more than a specialist mountain domestique, showing that he could handle rolling terrain, tactical racing and opportunities to take responsibility for his own results.
Decathlon build experience around Paul Seixas
The signing forms part of Decathlon CMA CGM’s broader recruitment strategy for 2027.
Paul Seixas has emerged as one of the most promising young riders in professional cycling, with his victory at the 2026 Il Lombardia adding considerably to expectations surrounding his future.
The French team are assembling experienced riders capable of providing support in the mountains while also giving their sports directors alternatives for races where Seixas is not the designated leader.
De Plus fits that approach particularly well.
His years alongside Thomas at INEOS have given him direct experience of protecting a Grand Tour contender through difficult mountain stages. He has also demonstrated that he can remain competitive in the general classification when the opportunity arises.
The addition of Pavel Sivakov provides another rider familiar with that role following his years supporting Tadej Pogačar at UAE Team Emirates XRG.
Meanwhile, Ben O’Connor’s return to Decathlon brings back a proven Grand Tour podium finisher who previously enjoyed the strongest years of his career with the French team.
Having those riders available should allow Decathlon to approach major stage races with greater flexibility.
De Plus can help set the pace on long climbs, protect a leader before decisive attacks or take responsibility when racing circumstances give him an opportunity to pursue a result.
His ability on flatter terrain also makes him useful during the positioning battles and exposed stages that can be just as important to a general classification campaign as the final climbs.
What the move means for 2027
The arrival of De Plus adds another experienced rider to a Decathlon climbing group that will look considerably different next season.
Felix Gall’s departure removes a rider who finished on the podium at both the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España in 2026. Gregor Mühlberger’s exit also takes away an established mountain domestique.
De Plus and Sivakov offer experience and climbing support, while O’Connor provides another possible general classification leader alongside Seixas.
The precise distribution of roles will become clearer when Decathlon announce their race programmes for 2027.
De Plus’s contract runs through the end of 2028, giving him two seasons to establish himself within the French team’s developing structure.
He arrives without the recent victories of some of his new team-mates, but with a substantial record of supporting riders competing for Grand Tour podiums.
For a team hoping to challenge the strongest squads in professional cycling, that experience could prove valuable when the road begins to climb.
-
Photo Credit: Getty
