Despite the pandemonium that he created within the velodrome and around the world by finally winning Paris-Roubaix at the seventh time of asking, Wout van Aert didn’t put it down to him performing at a level above previous editions.
In his post-race winner’s press conference, Van Aert spoke candidly about how his relationship with Paris-Roubaix was instantly shaped by the death of his former teammate Michael Goolaerts during the Visma rider’s debut Hell of the North, before opening up on what was running through his mind as he went to battle with Tadej Pogačar, and how luck proved to be on his side.
The Belgian led the charge in the Arenberg Trench before being hamstrung by a puncture shortly after the Slovenian had suffered a similar fate on the 16th sector of pavé. Van Aert was able to rejoin the lead group and then launch a race-deciding attack that only Pogačar could follow. When the velodrome arrived, he used his sprint power to storm past the road world champion on the final track bank.
Article continues below
The Visma-Lease a Bike rider was able to answer Pogačar’s effort, and opted for a more defensive approach from there on in, but his belief in his own chances wasn’t dampened.
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at CyclingNews RSS Feed…