On Sunday 17 April the women set off for the 2nd edition of Paris-Roubaix Femmes. The inaugural edition featured 17 cobbled sectors, while the pavé began very early in the race. Mons-en-Pévèle and the Carrefour de l’Arbre were included and the amount of cobbles added up to 29.5 kilometres. So a quarter of the action tooks place on the demanding surface.

Lizzie Deignan is title holder. Last year, she attacked on the first of the seventeen cobbled sectors and soloed to glory. Marianne Vos and Elisa Longo Borghini rounded out the podium.

On Sunday 17 April the bunch sets off for the 118th Mens edition of Paris-Roubaix. It’s the third of five Monuments on the cycling calendar. Also known as the ‘Hell of the North’, Paris-Roubaix is one of the oldest and one of the most difficult one-day races with riders having to endure a daunting gauntlet of cobbled sectors before the finish in the Roubaix Velodrome.

A perfect blend of positioning, power and tactical nous are required if a rider is to lift the famous cobble-stone trophy awarded to the victor, not too mention a large slice of luck. Given the conditions, mechanical issues are unavoidable in Roubaix, the timing of which can be the difference between winning and losing.

Sonny Colbrelli is title holder. Last year, the Italian outsprinted Florian Vermeersch and Mathieu van der Poel in the Roubaix Velodrome at the end of a rain soaked and muddy edition.