The organizer of Paris-Roubaix announced this Wednesday April 3 a change to the route a few days before the race.
This is the news from the last few hours. A few days before the legendary Paris-Roubaix cycling race, the organizer of the event announced this Wednesday, April 3, the installation of a chicane on the route, just before the entrance to the legendary Trouée d’Arenberg. The objective of this modification of the route is to break the speed of the competitors, which could reach 60 to 70 km/h before this paved sector.
A change requested by cyclists
As Thierry Gouvenou, the race director, clarified, this modification of the route is a request from the professional cyclists’ union, concerned about the number and severity of falls on this paved strip of more than two kilometers. Instead of arriving in a straight line in the Arenberg gap, the runners will go around a central island. The idea is “to approach the gap at a speed of around 25 km/h”, he told theAFP the organizer of the race.
For safety reasons and following a request from @cpacyclingtea #ParisRoubaix organization is modifying the approach to the Trouée d’Arenberg.
The route will take a chicane just before the entrance to the sector in order to slow the speed at which the riders enter the sector— Paris-Roubaix (@parisroubaix) April 3, 2024
Thierry Gouvenou also clarified that this very pronounced chicane was a temporary solution, and that the organization was thinking of a less dangerous system for future editions.
Contrasted reactions
The request for change may have been made by the cyclists’ union, but not everyone appreciated this last minute modification. This is particularly the case of the big favorite of the edition Mathieu van der Poel. The latter, visibly unhappy with this change, replied “Is this a joke?” has a video on X of the route of the famous chicane. On the other hand, the winner of the 2022 edition Dylan van Baarle seems satisfied with this modification.
An even more difficult sector?
Already renowned for being one of the toughest sectors of the Hell of the North, the Arenberg gap should be even more complicated this year with this chicane. In fact, by breaking the speed before entering, the organization also removed the momentum with which the riders arrived. We therefore risk seeing many competitors dismount in this sector due to the very irregular condition of the cobblestones in the gap. Already a symbol of the hell that is Paris-Roubaix between the wind, the rain and the cobblestones, the Arenberg gap could this year make even more of a difference, despite its location around 100 kilometers from the finish.