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news
Philippe Gilbert wins Paris-Roubaix (+ video highlights)
Philippe Gilbert has won Paris-Roubaix, making Milan-San Remo the only one of cycling’s five Monuments that the Deceuninck-Quick Step rider has yet to win.
The 36-year-old, who repeatedly attacked during today’s 257-kilometre race from Compiegne, came off the wheel of Katusha’s Nils Politt on the final bend of the Roubaix velodrome to clinch the 117th edition of the race nicknamed the Queen of the Classics, as well as the Hell of the North.
The pair had got away from three other riders in the leading group – Gilbert’s team mate Yves Lampaert, who would finish third, EF Education First’s Sep Vanmarcke and defending champion Peter Sagan – after Politt launched an attack with 14 kilometres remaining, only the eventual winner able to bridge across.
Jumbo-Visla rider Wout van Aert had also been in the front group, but was dropped with 18 kilometres still to ride, tiring after he, Vanmarcke and Lampaert had managed to rejoin Gilbert, Politt and Sagan, who had opened up a small gap.
The six-man group formed with 49 kilometres to go after a solo attack launched by Gilbert a couple of kilometres earlier had been reeled in.
Victory today sees Gilbert join an elite club of only eight riders to have won at least four of the five Monuments – his best finish in the one he is missing, Milan-San Remo, is third place, which he achieved in both 2008 and 2011.
His previous wins in cycling’s big five one-day races came at il Lombardia in 2009 and 2010, Liege-Bastogne-Liege in 2011, and the Tour of Flanders in 2017. He also won the road world championships in 2012.
Only three cyclists, all Belgian, have won all five Monuments – Eddy Merckx, Roger De Vlaeminck and Rik van Looy.
"I still have this dream to win all of them," Gilbert said after his win. Little by little I'm getting there.
"Politt's very courageous. In the end the best rider won, and thankfully it was me," he continued.
"I've always wanted to win all the Monuments, and I'm getting closer now."
One of the big talking points from today’s race will be the crash that forced Lotto-Soudal’s Tiesj Benoot to abandon with a little more than 70 kilometres remaining, reportedly after a collision involving the Jumbo-Visla team car, with the incident bound to see renewed focus on rider safety.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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11 comments
Curious the reaction this gets. Road.cc doesn't cover every race, not even every monument, so it is not beyond the realms of possibility that people can be caught out. But if they were to implement non-spoiler headlines on the home page, or a non-spoiler mode for logged-in users, who would it harm? Yet some people choose to make rude and disparaging remarks about anyone who voices the harmless opinion that such a feature would benefit them. They seem furious that it should even be mentioned. It is just a bit of feedback, which the proprietors can take or leave. For anyone else, if you find it so tedious, you are welcome to ignore it, or respond in a civil manner (and thanks to those who did.)
The Likely Lads did a sitcom on this very issue (football of course) in 1973.
I learned long ago that if I didn't wake up for the very early F1 start, not to watch any news, they sneak in the result, and now that I only get to watch highlights I do not do any news until I watch the show. Though with yesterdays race...
Since discovering Road.cc, if I spent the day at work during "the month of July" I will not have a peek until I get the chance to watch the highlights on ITV 4 (oh and ITV, sort out your on demand so that we can watch the highlights on the same day), and indeed because the Brits have been doing so well in the TdF normal news will report on it so have to be even more careful.
Whatever happened to them?
For goodness sake, what's wrong with people? Everybody is aware, I'd assume, that road.cc is a . . . wait for it . . . cycling news and reviews website. I think major race results qualify as news - yes, even headline news! "head-line" – the clue's in the name.
I thought it was a bit of an odd race - lots of action early on and up to Arenberg, and then a succession of riders finding that today wasn't really their day. Politt got his tactics just right - shall we call it 'doing a Dillier'?, Vanmarcke was unfortunate with whatever mechanical he had, Sagan's clearly not quite right still and Van Aert just had one of those races where you spend so much effort staying at the front there's nothing left. Meanwhile Gilbert put his nose in the wind at the right times and had enough to get the job done. Can't see him winning MSR, but it's quite a palmares even so.
You know you have to avoid the internet and social media if you don't want the results of any big sporting event ruinied if you're watching on catchup or reply don't you? It's really not that hard
I thought it was an enthralling and exciting race with no clear winner until the very end, proper edge of the seat stuff with a great narrative playing out from the Arenberg to the Roubaix velodrome. Super happy for Gilbert, a deserved victory and proof that age isn't a barrier to success at this top level of racing
Well yes and no.
I still see no reason to put the result as a headline on the front page of the website, unless you want folk who are following races to avoid the site during the cycling season for fear of spoiling their enjoyment of a recorded highlights show etc.
I know I do during the TdF.
Luckily unless a Brit is winning, the MSM are unlikely to be interested and cover it beyond a footnote.
I'm sure there is a way of making the result easily accessible to interested folk without spoiling it for others.
Must we have these same, tedious comments EVERY year?
Road.cc have chosen to put the result in the headline (as do *ALL* sports news websites). They get more click-throughs and engagement. If you don't want to know the result of a cycling race, just don't visit a cycling news website.
What's so difficult?
Yeah, I thought this was a golden rule.
Wouldn't be roadcc without blatant spoiler headlines.
Didn't find the race that enthralling as it took so long for any moves to be made that looked like realistic shots .
Spolier alert. Oh, bit late.