Nothing set in stone – Mathieu van der Poel can be beaten at Paris-Roubaix

Sunday’s Paris-Roubaix brings the curtain down on the 2024 cobbled season, marking the end of the ‘Holy week’ of the Classics, a week after Easter and the Tour of Flanders.

Mathieu van der Poel is the rider to beat on Sunday in the men’s race. He seems a level above, a logical winner and destined for greatness. Yet those already bemoaning his dominance should remember that the cycling world could shift on its axis once again, as it already has done so often this spring.