World Champion Mathieu Van der Poel won Paris-Roubaix for the second year in a row as he rode to solo victory in this year’s eventful edition.
The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider launched his fatal attack on the three-star sector Orchies with 60 kilometres remaining, making it the longest solo victory in 30 years.
Set up by his teammate Gianni Vermeersch, Van der Poel took advantage of a moment of calm, stamping his rainbow shoes down on the pedals and accelerating off the front of the group.
The elite chasing group, which included riders like Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), Nils Politt (UAE Team Emirates), Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ) and Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) initially hesitated, with attempts to follow closely marked by Van der Poel’s teammates, Gianni Vermeersch and Jasper Philipsen.
Showcasing his technical ability, the Dutch rider increased his lead on the subsequent cobbled sectors. “Anything can happen in Paris-Roubaix,” commentator and two-time winner Sean Kelly warned. But, with each pavé sector negotiated without incident, a win seemed more inevitable.
Van der Poel entered the velodrome with a lead of almost three minutes, emotion visible in his face as the bell rang for the final circuit. Arms raised, he crossed the finish line to a cheering crowd, cementing his place in history.
Behind him, the chasing group had splintered. Pedersen, Küng, Politt, Pithie and Philipsen pulled away. Pithie, however, crashed on a corner with 27 kilometres remaining, while Küng was dropped after an acceleration by Philipsen, 10 kilometres from the finish. Pedersen, Politt and Philipsen entered the velodrome together, each eyeing up a place on the podium.
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Pedersen led the trio into the velodrome, looking round at Philipsen and Politt, both on his wheel. Politt launched his attack early, with Pedersen coming round him on the outside and Philipsen on the inside. It was Philipsen who snatched second place, securing a one-two win for Alpecin-Deceuninck for the second year in a row. Pedersen claimed third, with Politt fourth.
Küng, still battling to catch up, finished fifth, ahead of a pursuing Vermeersch and Pithie, who finished sixth and seventh respectively.
Following on from his 2023 win at Roubaix —also a solo victory— Van der Poel joins a select group of riders to win the esteemed Hell of the North more than once. His win last weekend at the Tour of Flanders —solo again— makes him the 11th man in history to complete the Flanders/Roubaix double, doing so for the first time in 11 years.
The win also brings his Monument tally to six, putting Van der Poel in the top 16 of all time.
“I could never have dreamed of this as a child,” said Van der Poel after the race. “I’m a bit lost for words.”
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