Pogacar falls, Van de Poel triumphs at Paris-Roubaix

Mathieu van der Poel and Tadey Pogacar: the duel of phenomena is renewed, and this time it was the Dutch cyclist who won. Van der Poel triumphed at Paris-Roubaix, winning his second Monument classic of the year (after Milan-San Remo) at the expense of his great rival, who won the Tour of Flanders a week earlier.

Van der Poel took advantage of a Pogacar crash with 38 kilometers to go: the two were dueling at the front when the Slovenian was betrayed by the cobblestones and went too long, making a wrong right turn. Instead, the Dutchman stayed in the saddle and took advantage by stretching and taking a decisive margin that later earned him the victory. Van der Poel was not even affected by a water bottle that a spectator threw at him about 30 kilometers from the finish.

Pogacar changed bikes and then tried a desperate comeback, but there was nothing he could do and he finished over a minute behind. Third place went to Dane Mads Pedersen ahead of Van Aert.

Van der Poel won Paris-Roubaix for the third time in a row, a feat achieved in the past only by Octave Lapize and Francesco Moser. No dice for Ganna, who punctured in the opening sections and was no longer able to get back into the race.