Who is Frits Biesterbos? The Dutchman surprised friend and foe on Sunday, October 12, by joining the leading group at the 2025 Gravel World Championships in South Limburg. From that position, he had a strong chance to win the world gravel title for some time. After an intense duel with Florian Vermeersch, he secured a silver medal.
The 23-year-old Biesterbos joined the continental team of BEAT Cycling as a stagiaire in the fall of 2024 and earned a contract thanks to his performances. This year, the Dutch rider had already showcased his talent. For example, he finished second in the GP Slovenian Istria and VN Adria Mobil and placed thirteenth in the highly competitive Volta NXT Classic.
At the end of September 2025, Biesterbos became the Dutch gravel champion by finishing ahead of Tibor Del Grosso, Joren Bloem, and Mike Teunissen. Shortly before that, he had also achieved several top results in Dutch and Belgian one-day races, such as Slag om Norg (10th), GP Cerami (12th), GP Rik Van Looy (18th), GP de Wallonie (19th), and Gooikse Pijl (21st).
At the beginning of 2024, Biesterbos was mainly a mountain biker. At the World Cups in Nove Mesto na Morave, he finished seventh in the U23 short track and eighth in the Cross Country race. Later in the year, he also placed fifth at both the Dutch National Mountain Bike Cross Country and the National Mountain Bike Marathon Championships.
In the summer of 2025, BEAT Cycling extended Biesterbos' contract through the end of 2026, but team manager Thijs Zonneveld mentioned in his podcast and an earlier press release that several (pro) teams were also keeping an eye on Biesterbos’s performances. That attention likely only grew after the gravel Worlds in South Limburg.
The Dutch rider surprised the cycling crowd at that World Championship by fighting deep into the finale for the global title. After a duel with Florian Vermeersch, the Dutchman had to settle for the silver medal. An outstanding achievement, as he finished well ahead of world-class riders like Matej Mohoric and Tom Pidcock.
