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Paris - Roubaix 2021 (03.10)

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Honestly, I don't know how he's doing on wet cobbles. But he got 6th in 2018, 4th in 2019 and 5th in the 2021 Tour of Flanders.
He was doing a good Vuelta until he crashed out and is clearly only trying to peak for Roubaix ever since.
So he'll be up there in the mix (barring bad luck), and just a simple reasoning: there are 14 (+ let's say 3 riders from DQS, makes it 17) riders in that list of favourites. It's a bit strange to overlook a constant top 10 finisher (even top 5 and podium). I also think he won't win, but he has a better shot, just going by results, than half of the names in that list (Colbrelli, Kristoff, Naesen, Kung, + I don't see a fading Degenkolb doing well after crashing out in the worlds, I don't see van Baarle doing any better than his best, which was 16th, just because he did very well in the world's...).
I agree he deserves a couple of stars. He's been a realiable Roubaix rider for a long time now, but winning such a race in wet conditions requires all stars aligning (which very seldom occurs with Sep).
The good thing for him is that Van Aert and VdP don't appear to be in top shape, Sagan is declining and DQS has a monster team but no proven winner for Roubaix. Could be the right year for an outsider.
 
I agree he deserves a couple of stars. He's been a realiable Roubaix rider for a long time now, but winning such a race in wet conditions requires all stars aligning (which very seldom occurs with Sep).
The good thing for him is that Van Aert and VdP don't appear to be in top shape, Sagan is declining and DQS has a monster team but no proven winner for Roubaix. Could be the right year for an outsider.
If you count the DQS riders as outsiders then maybe yeah, but I consider it a strong possibility they can maximally abuse their numerical advantage and get a tactical win.

That said, Van der Poel was hopeful his form was rising and he can be better next week, although barring technical ability I don't see PR as the race best suited to his ability.
 
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Whatever the weather, the cobbles will be humid, and potentially with much more vegetation between them. DQS seem way overpowered - I wouldn't want to assign leaders with that team. I think anyone of them have a shot at winning. Even Declercq, with the good old 'breakaway of the day that is never caught back' move (who would chase that break if Declercq is in it, besides?).

I read an interview with Declercq a while back (don't remember where) in which he said that this is actually his dream scenario as he feels PR is one of the races most suited to him and this might be the only way for him to be able to win. The team apparently also wouldn't mind this scenario but he thinks it will never happen because the other teams never let a breakaway go with him (or any other DQS rider) in it.
 
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well, i guess the weather needs to make amends for the last 20 years of sunshine during roubaix. this prediction is actually insanely bad. that's a ton of rain, and also a ton of wind. watch it get cancelled when this actually happens.
 
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Watch out with what you wish for. There could be a lot of rain Sunday. Some rain is OK, but we all know the French are capable of cancelling this race when there are too many puddles.
Maybe not cancelling the whole thing but cutting out half of the sectors because deemed to be too dangerous as submerged by rain water or covered in mud is a very but very real risk and the reason i always hope for good weather there. In recent editions i remember they where asked multiple times for extra cleaning of cobbles on friday/saturday despite the last rain was always some 5 days earlier or even more, just imagine what could happen already with rain a couple of days before the race.
 
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Really hope Mads P is ready and okay after the crashes in Worlds. It would be a missed opportunity for him to miss his favorite race in the optimal weather conditions for him with rain. That might not happen again in his career
 
It's a one day race, so nobody is obliged to make it to the finish. If it was the first week of the Tour it would be understandable to cut the worst sectors. However in a one day race it doesn't matter if only twenty guys make it to the finish. So let it go ahead, no matter what!

That said, I still fear it will be like every year: dry on Sunday afternoon, in spite of all the apocalyptic forecasts.
 
It's a one day race, so nobody is obliged to make it to the finish. If it was the first week of the Tour it would be understandable to cut the worst sectors. However in a one day race it doesn't matter if only twenty guys make it to the finish. So let it go ahead, no matter what!

That said, I still fear it will be like every year: dry on Sunday afternoon, in spite of all the apocalyptic forecasts.

What if nobody makes it to the finish? Will the winner then be the last rider to climb off? A Last Man Standing situation?

And I know, not gonna happen.
 
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Just watching 2015 version on eurosport, was anything ever done about the riders that went through the train barriers? It's one of the stupidest things I've ever seen on my life.
Same situation as in 2006, with these riders passing when the barriers are closed and the train is coming. They did this in 2015, 2006, and probably even before.

I only know that there have been riders disqualified in 2006. Don‘t know of consequences in 2015.

These situations are really dangerous. Roubaix is one of the most important races in UCI calendar, for sure. Passing these closed barriers, however, is risk of death. The riders do not only pass the barriers one second or so after they have closed; they pass the barriers also five or seven seconds after closing. They rely on seeing the train. If they cannot see it yet, they pass the rails. I could imagine that someday, one or several riders don‘t make it in time, and get hit by the train. I hope it never happens.
 
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Same situation as in 2006, with these riders passing when the barriers are closed and the train is coming. They did this in 2015, 2006, and probably even before.

I only know that there have been riders disqualified in 2006. Don‘t know of consequences in 2015.

These situations are really dangerous. Roubaix is one of the most important races in UCI calendar, for sure. Passing these closed barriers, however, is risk of death. The riders do not only pass the barriers one second or so after they have closed; they pass the barriers also five or seven seconds after closing. They rely on seeing the train. If they cannot see it yet, they pass the rails. I could imagine that someday, one or several riders don‘t make it in time, and get hit by the train. I hope it never happens.
The one rider that everyone could recognize was Demare, the French NC at the time, so nothing happened...
 
Same situation as in 2006, with these riders passing when the barriers are closed and the train is coming. They did this in 2015, 2006, and probably even before.

I only know that there have been riders disqualified in 2006. Don‘t know of consequences in 2015.

These situations are really dangerous. Roubaix is one of the most important races in UCI calendar, for sure. Passing these closed barriers, however, is risk of death. The riders do not only pass the barriers one second or so after they have closed; they pass the barriers also five or seven seconds after closing. They rely on seeing the train. If they cannot see it yet, they pass the rails. I could imagine that someday, one or several riders don‘t make it in time, and get hit by the train. I hope it never happens.

Here, watch from 6:40:

View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r-w-FcLCpa4
 

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