Italian rider Sonny Colbrelli has won a rainy and mud-soaked Paris-Roubaix cycling race on his debut.
The 31-year-old Bahrain Victorious rider crossed the finish line ahead of Florian Vermeersch of Belgium (Lotto Soudal) and Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix).
He caught them in a three-way sprint at the Roubaix velodrome and all the riders were caked in dirt from head to toe.
Getty Images: Etienne Garnier
)The race, which had been scheduled for April 11 but was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic, is one of cycling’s five high-profile classics, along with the Tour of Flanders, Milan-San Remo, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Giro di Lombardia.
But it is known as the Queen of the Classics because it is the most prestigious of the five.
The grueling and dangerous 258-kilometre trek is also known as the Hell of the North because of its treacherous profile — including more than 50 kilometres of cobblestones spread out over 29 sectors.
Getty Images: Fred Mons
)Colbrelli collapsed to the ground and was in tears after his victory.
“Unbelievable, my first Parigi (Paris)-Roubaix and I win. I’m very happy,” Colbrelli said.
“Today is a legendary Roubaix with the rain and the weather.”
Getty Images: Fred Mons
)Three-time world road race champion Peter Sagan — who won the race in 2018 — and Mads Pedersen were among the riders to crash in particularly bad conditions following heavy rainfall for several days in the Paris region.
Getty Images: Tim de Waele
)“I was at the limit in the final,” Colbrelli said.
“It was super difficult because I had to pay attention for the crashes from the first sectors and then there’s always the stress to be in position in the cobbles.”
AP
