Roubaix: On a ‘Sunday in Hell’ – as it is known – Tadej Pogacar of the UAE Team Emirates XRG became the first reigning Tour de France champion to podium at Paris-Roubaix since Eddy Merckx in 1975. After a breathtaking battle with Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), the world champion finished second in the Roubaix Velodrome, writing his way into the history books.

According to Emirates News Agency, as Van der Poel was able to celebrate a third victory in a row, Pogacar overcame mechanicals and an unfortunate crash to cross the line alone in second. Behind the race debutant, his UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammate Florian Vermeersch secured fifth place after a gutsy ride that saw him continue his fine spring Classics campaign.

After Pogacar, Van der Poel, and Lidl-Trek’s Mads Pedersen had blown the race to pieces heading into the Trou©e d’Arenberg, it looked as though the winner might come from a select group. This became ever more likely as Pogacar and Van der Poel became a leading duo alone, but the world champion ran wide on a right-hand bend, allowing Van der Poel to take the initiative and ride to the finish alone.

Speaking to the media after the finish, the second-placed Pogacar reflected on a memorable debut outing at the Queen of the Classics. ‘Today was a great race for our team, with two guys in the top five. We can come back next year with a strong team again and be motivated to fight for victory over the next few years.