Mathieu van der Poel wins men's Paris-Roubaix

Mathieu van der Poel claimed victory in the 120th edition of Paris-Roubaix on Sunday. The 28-year-old Dutch rider crossed the finish line after a 15km solo ride ahead of teammate Jasper Philipsen and Wout van Aert, who suffered a puncture at a crucial moment.

Former winners Peter Sagan and Dylan van Baarle crashed out of the race, while Belgian favourite Van Aert was unlucky with an early puncture. German John Degenkolb crashed on the cobblestoned Carrefour de l'Arbre and Van Aert launched his attack, but Van der Poel quickly rejoined him. Van Aert then suffered a second puncture, leaving the Dutchman alone in the lead for the final 15km. In the background, Van Aert and Philipsen battled for second place. 

"I had one of my best days ever on the bike"

Paris-Roubaix is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the Monuments or classics of the European calendar. This was Van der Poel's fourth Monument victory, and his second this season after Milan-San Remo. He finished second in the Tour of Flanders last week. His best Paris-Roubaix result to date was third place in 2021.

"I had one of my best days ever on the bike," said Van der Poel. "I felt very strong. I attacked a few times, but it was difficult to get away from the others in the breakaway. This is maybe my best classics season ever. We'll celebrate tonight. It was an incredible team performance today, with Jasper finishing second. It doesn't get any better than that. I am very happy that I was able to finish. It was such a tough race and we did a lot of work as a team right from the start."

On Saturday, Canadian Alison Jackson was the surprise winner of the women's race.

^{Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Elegant) claims victory in the 120th Paris-Roubaix © BELGA PHOTO JASPER JACOBS}