More than 55 kilometers of paved sectors. This is what awaits the Paris-Roubaix riders this Sunday when they tackle the 259.9 kilometers of the course. If the “Hell of the North” is undoubtedly one of the most difficult races of the season, the weather, good or bad, constitutes a major variable when it comes to tackling the race.
🪨 Irregular, brutal, tiring, riding on the cobblestones of #ParisRoubaix requires a very special technique.
💥 Here are some tips from runners to win on the roads of the North. pic.twitter.com/fomwlideL7
— Paris-Roubaix (@parisroubaix) April 5, 2024
No rain on the Trouée d’Arenberg?
The weather should be cloudy, and sometimes capricious. The paved sector of the commune of Saint-Python - the third of the race, rated four stars - could reserve some unpleasant surprises due to the possibility of showers. In Wallers-Arenberg, a town where the paved sector of the Trouée d'Arenberg is located - at the entrance to which a chicane has been installed for safety reasons - the mercury will normally display 18°C. The wind will be between 25 and 40 km/h in the area. On the other hand, no rain, a priori, at this strategic place in the race. Precipitation is possible in the late afternoon. However, the estimated passage time to Arenberg is 15 hours.
Towards Mons-en-Pévèle, there is a slight risk of rain early in the afternoon. A parameter that could make this paved sector even more difficult. For their arrival at the Roubaix velodrome, around 5 p.m., the riders will finish the race under clouds and a temperature of around 16°C.
This Paris-Roubaix promises to be extremely complicated whatever happens. With the weather of the last few days, the cobblestones will indeed be very wet, and the mud will never be far away; The huge favorite for the Hell of the North is the Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), winner of the Tour of Flanders last Sunday. He dreams of a double, after his masterful victory last year.