Peter Sagan wins finishing sprint for first Paris-Roubaix title

In the rainbow jersey of the UCI world champion, Peter Sagan added a monumental victory to his career list of achievements by claiming the Hell of the North.

On Sunday in Roubaix, defending UCI world champion Peter Sagan executed a superb tactical race to win his first Paris-Roubaix title. Sagan became just the fifth cyclist in the race’s long history to win the legendary one-day race while wearing the rainbow jersey of the world champion. He joined legends Rik Van Looy, Eddy Merckx, Francesco Moser, and Bernard Hinault on the exclusive list.

Paris-Roubaix is an uncompromising classic on the cycling calendar. Featuring 53 kilometers of cobblestones over 29 sections of the 257-kilometer course, Paris-Roubaix takes riders over some of the most picturesque and painful roads in northern France. It jars each rider’s bones, and the weather consistently offers up either muck and mud or bone-dry dustiness.

Sagan made a bold move to claim victory. With 54 kilometers still remaining in the race, the Slovakian star broke away off the front of the peloton. Joining Sagan off the front were three other riders, including Swiss national champion Silvan Dillier. Also in the quartet were Sven Erik Bystrom and Jelle Wallays. The leaders built up an advantage of over a minute.

Sagan put in the lion’s share of the pulls at the front trying to build the advantage. Instead his solo efforts broke the legs of his partners off the front. Bystrom was the first to fade back into the peloton. Wallays held on until the three-star stretch of cobbles from Cysoing to Bourghelles before cracking.

Dillier and Sagan, the national champion and the world champion, held off the hard-charging group of favorites. Despite the efforts of defending champion Greg Van Avermaet, 2018 Tour of Flanders winner and former Paris-Roubaix champion Niki Terpstra, and other cycling stars, the main field could not catch the duo.

MEDAL RESULT | Paris-Roubaix

Peter Sagan

Silvan Dillier

Niki Terpstra

Dillier led Sagan into the Roubaix Velodrome at the end of the race. It was only a matter of time until Sagan put in his trademark finishing kick. He waited until the final bank in the oval before the finish line, dropping sharply down the track to gain the advantage. From there it was a relatively straightforward sprint, as Sagan pulled away from his Swiss counterpart.

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Along with his win in the Tour of Flanders in 2016, the Sunday surge by Sagan gives the Slovak star victory in two of cycling’s one-day monument classics. Now the peloton turns its attention to stage racing. The Giro d’Italia beginning on May 4, with the Tour de France following in July. After his disqualification from last year’s Tour, Sagan will be back in France on strong form as he looks to tie Erik Zabel’s record of six green jerseys as the winner of the points classification.