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Paris-Roubaix 2019: Philippe Gilbert wins Hell of the North as Peter Sagan finishes fifth

The win was Gilbert’s fourth Monument classic

Lawrence Ostlere
Sunday 14 April 2019 17:16 BST
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Cycling race stopped after female rider catches up with men's race

Philippe Gilbert won the 2019 Paris-Roubaix in a sprint finish in the Roubaix velodrome against the talented German Nils Politt to win the famous classics race for the first time. Gilbert’s Belgian compatriot Yves Lampaert finished third, after last year’s winner Peter Sagan had slipped away from the leading group to come in fifth.

Gilbert and Politt led a decisive six-man break with 70km to go, with Wout van Aert, Sep Vanmarcke, Lampaert and Sagan all in tow. An attack by Gilbert shed Van Aert before a burst of speed by Politt on the Gruson cobbles left behind the rest in the final 15km.

The duo worked well together to build their lead before reaching the velodrome together, where QuickStep’s Gilbert patiently waited for the final lap before zooming away to victory.

The win was Gilbert’s fourth Monument classic to go with his triumphs at the Tour of Flanders, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and two at the Tour of Lombardy, leaving only Milan-San Remo off his impressive resume. Only three riders – Rik Van Looy, Eddy Merckx and Roger De Vlaeminck– in history have won all five.

As a smaller rider, Gilbert has always been considered unlikely to succeed on the bone-rattling cobbles of Paris-Roubaix, which tend to favour the heavier members of the pack, but the Belgian insisted he had never doubted his chances in the iconic race.

“It’s hard to believe,” said Gilbert. ”I was ill before the Tour of Flanders last week but I trained very well and I was feeling the form was there. I’ve always wanted to win all the Monuments, and I’m getting closer now. A lot of people thought riding on the cobbles was too hard for me.”

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