Paris-Roubaix: info with one day to go
October 2 nd 2021 - 18:38
- On the day after the first edition of Paris-Roubaix Femmes won by Lizzie Deignan in a solo effort, it’s all set for the first autumnal version of the race that was born 125 years ago. A muddy course is very much anticipated.
- Five former winners are back on the start line in Compiègne along with prestigious and on-form first timers Mathieu van der Poel and Michael Valgren.
- Wout van Aert and Dylan van Baarle look in great shape only one week after the world championship.
A wet, muddy and windy Paris-Roubaix on the cards
The 118th Paris-Roubaix sees the experts of the cobblestones coming back on their favourite playground. But the weather conditions are likely to make it a very different kind of racing than in previous years since the last wet Sunday in the history of the event goes as far back as in 2001 when Servais Knaven won. “It’s even more dangerous when the cobbled sectors are half wet”, race director Thierry Gouvenou explained on the eve of the competition. “A rider gets confidence and speed on a dry section, then he’s inclined to brake when he sees a muddy portion and the risk of slipping or crashing is high.” Forecast also indicates a possibility of wind from the west. “As a consequence”, Gouvenou said, “they will face a head wind at the exit of each sector. The race will be long…”
Five former winners at the start
The past nine editions of Paris-Roubaix have delivered nine different winners. Five of them are back on the start line: Niki Terpstra (2014), John Degenkolb (2015), Greg Van Avermaet (2017), Peter Sagan (2018) and Philippe Gilbert (2019). The latter is the defending champion. “It’s been more than 900 days since I won”, the Belgian said. “It’ll be very different tomorrow. We’re not serene with the weather conditions. It’ll be more about luck than about the legs and the wind will play a major role in the first part of the race.” “I’m happy to be back even though my condition could be better”, Van Avermaet echoed. “I’m no longer in my best years but I feel good and this race suits me, so my experience can help my leaders”, Terpstra added. “I’m very excited and happy to be back”, Sagan commented. “For most of the riders, it’s the last race for this year. It’s gonna be very interesting with the rain. We need a lot of luck. It’ll be about how to ride a bicycle in the mud. It’s gonna be a real Hell of the North!”
Van Aert and van Baarle with their World’s form
Paris-Roubaix comes one week after the world championships this year. It gives Wout van Aert an opportunity to make it up for his disappointment in Leuven. “I feel good and I’m very motivated”, the Belgian champion said. “It’s been a long time since the last edition. This is the nicest race of the calendar for me. I don’t think the rain is to my disadvantage. It’ll be a big battlefield and a long battle. It suits me. Cyclo-cross skills can help a little bit.” This time around, he’ll race against Jasper Stuyven, his team-mate from the national team who finished fourth on Sunday (fourth in the 2017 Paris-Roubaix also). “Mentally, I have recovered”, the Milan-Sanremo winner said. “Physically, it has taken longer but I’m OK. Paris-Roubaix is a race I dream of. I think I’m ranked quite high on the list of the contenders.” Stuyven is one of the four winners of Paris-Roubaix junior on the start line, along with Florian Sénéchal who follows him on the record book (2011), Mads Würtz Schmidt (2012) and Mads Pedersen (2013). Dylan van Baarle, the silver medallist at the world championship, is another favourite: “It took me a few days to recover from the world championship”, the Dutchman from Ineos declared. “But I’m all set to go, feeling OK at training. My condition is very good but a lot can happen, especially with this weather. We definitely go for the win with Michal Kwiatkowski, Gianni Moscon, Luke Rowe. We have a few cards to play.”
Van der Poel and Valgren among the first timers
As van Aert highlighted cyclo-cross skills as an advantage this Sunday, his arch-rival Mathieu van der Poel is a logical favourite as well. However, it’s the first participation of the second yellow jersey holder in this year’s Tour de France. “I also don’t have raced very much recently”, the Dutchman said. “But that may be an advantage this time. I expect a very hard edition with the wind and the rain. It’ll be hard for everyone anyway. I’ll try to win but first of all I’ll try to avoid punctures and mechanicals.” Third at the world championship, Michael Valgren declared: “I went straight to the Tour of Eurometropole after the world championship and I did the recon of Paris-Roubaix, so I only had yesterday and today for a rest. It’s not the race I dream of. It’s the first time I do it so it’s quite an experience. It’ll be even crazier than normally. It’s a monument. It’s a really big race. It’s scary. Going to the first sectors it’ll be just a big sprint. Hopefully there’ll a few splits before and I’ll be in the front group.” The list of other first timers include the 2014 world champion Kwiatkowski, the reigning European champion Sonny Colbrelli and Tro Bro Leon winner Connor Swift.