The biggest day of Classics racing of the season is upon us as the men’s and women’s pelotons head to northern France to tackle Paris-Roubaix and Paris-Roubaix Femmes.
The men’s race earlier in the afternoon is headlined by a two-man battle as Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogačar top the favourites list, though the sixth edition of the women’s race looks to be a more open affair.
Twenty one teams and 126 riders are set to do battle over 20 cobbled sectors, including the Carrefour de l’Arbre and the Mons-en-Pévèle, on Sunday afternoon, with the sectors totalling 33.7km of the challenging Paris-Roubaix Femmes route.
Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime)
Three-time Tour of Flanders winner Lotte Kopecky couldn’t add to her record haul on Sunday, instead racing to fourth behind Demi Vollering, but she still looks to be the outstanding favourite for victory in Roubaix.
The Belgian star heads up an SD Worx-Protime line-up which also features another top favourite – more on her later – and she knows what it takes to win on the cobbles of Northern France.
Kopecky won the race in the rainbow stripes of world champion two years ago, triumphing in the Vélodrome André-Pétrieux in a sprint of six riders. Her other results include second in 2022, seventh in 2023, and two other top-15 rides.
This season she has two wins to her name, Nokere Koerse and, of course, Milan-San Remo. In form and able to win races alone and in a sprint, Kopecky could well be in line for win number two this weekend.
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma-Lease a Bike)
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot broke a pair of decades-old ducks for France last year, with her wins at Paris-Roubaix and the Tour de France Femmes…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at CyclingNews RSS Feed…