World champion Lotte Kopecky won Saturday’s fourth edition of the Paris-Roubaix Femmes, l’Enfer du Nord, the Hell of the North, from a six-rider sprint. Two early crashes in quick succession hampered 2023 champion Alison Jackson, but she was top Canadian in 27th.
Jackson pretended to cradle her cobble trophy and pat it on the head as she finished.
The Course
Awaiting the riders were 18 sectors of cobbles totalling 29.2 km of the route’s 148.5 km. Although the women’s race didn’t include Trouée d’Arenberg and its new chicane, it offered up other five-star sectors Mons-en-Pévèle and Carrefour de l’Arbre, the latter fairly close to the Roubaix velodrome. Four star cobbles were Sectors 17 Hornaing à Wandignies, 15 Tilloy à Sars-et-Rosières, 7 Auchy-lez-Orchies à Bersée and 3 Camphin-en-Pévèle. It was mostly dry and a little windy on Saturday.
The Riders
Elisa Longo Borghini and Lizzie Deignan, winners of the first two editions, didn’t start for Lidl-Trek, but the team had Elisa Balsamo and Ellen van Dijk to throw into the maelstrom. Kopecky led Balsamo by 202 points at the top of the standings.
Canada’s Alison Jackson was back to defend her title. Her compatriots in the race were Maggie Coles-Lyster of Roland and Komugi-Grand Est duo Laury Milette and Joséphine Péloquin.
All hail the Queen of Roubaix 👑
📸: Ashley Gruber#ParisRoubaix pic.twitter.com/vKiR78I96I
— EF Education–Cannondale (@EF_Cannondale) April 3, 2024
Twenty-four kilometers into the race and with three riders up the road, Jackson crashed twice in two kilometers and it took her 12 km to catch up to the peloton.
💥 The defending champion 🇨🇦@aliACTIONjackso has crashed twice!
💥 La tenante du titre 🇨🇦 Alison Jackson est tombée à deux reprises ! #ParisRoubaixFemmes #WatchTheFemmes pic.twitter.com/hfYzBJOSL3
— Paris-Roubaix Femmes avec Zwift (@RoubaixFemmes) April 6, 2024
There was no breakaway before **** Hornaing à Wandignies. DSM-Firmenich-PostNL led onto and over the sector. Jackson was up near the front. Lidl-Trek grabbed the controls on the next sector. Maggie Coles-Lyster was off the back.
Kopecky went hard on **** Tilloy à Sars-et-Rosières and Marianne Vos responded, both fighting their machines on the pavé. When the Kopecky-Vos group doubled in size, Jackson…
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