Legs 'like spaghetti' - Pogačar edged by van Aert in Paris-Roubaix

Belgian cyclist Wout van Aert of Team Visma-Lease a Bike celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the men's Paris-Roubaix cycling race. Jasper Jacobs/Belga/dpa

Wout van Aert stunned Tadej Pogačar in a dramatic sprint finish to claim his first career win at Paris-Roubaix on Sunday and deny his rival victories in all five cycling Monuments.

An eventful race over 258.3 kilometres with its 30 treacherous cobblestone sections culminated in the Roubaix Vélodrome where Belgium's van Aert rode out of Pogačar's slipstream entering the final banked turn and never looked back.

Jasper Stuyven of Belgium completed the podium in third ahead of Dutch three-time defending champion Mathieu van der Poel from a six-strong chasing group.

Van Aert got his second Monument win six years after his first in 2020 at Milan-Sanremo and dedicated it to his former team-mate Michael Goolaerts, who died in the 2018 edition of the race.

"It means everything. It has been the goal since 2018. This victory is for Michael and his family. It was a really tough day and after that I was not lucky so many times," he said.

"Tadej gave me a hard time. I was just sticking to my plan. I did my sprint in my dreams and preparations so many times."

Van Aert and Pogačar were among many who suffered punctures and mechanical problems in an eventful race in northern France.

Neutral service bike

Pogačar had aimed to join Belgian greats Eddy Merckx, Roger de Vlaeminck and Rik van Looy in winning the five iconic races, the others being Milano-Sanremo, the Tour of Flanders, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Il Lombardia.

He won Milan-Sanremo for the first time last month and the Tour of Flanders for a third time a week ago, with only Paris-Roubaix missing after he had to settle for second in his debut last year.

While not falling like in 2025, he suffered punctures, the first time even briefly using a bike from the neutral service, and van Aert also had a mechanical problem.

Van der Poel had two punctures in the infamous Arenberg forest section and lost a minute-and-a-half.

He tried to fight back and was within around 25 seconds of the front when van Aert accelerated from a small leader group with little over than 50km left, with Pogačar following and then also raising the pace.

The pair built a lead of around 40 seconds over a six-strong group led by van der Poel. Pogačar almost slipped in a turn with 17km left but held his balance. However, he was unable to drop van Aert and had no chance in the sprint finish.

"When I started my sprint my legs were like spaghetti," Pogačar said.

"I had three punctures and bike changes. It was not ideal. I was really cooked. There was not enough freshness in my legs. It was mission impossible in the end. He rode super smart."

In the women's race, German road cycling champion Franziska Koch prevailed.

The 25-year-old beat former three-time world champion Marianne Vos in a sprint at the end of the sixth edition, celebrating the biggest triumph of her career.

After 143.1 km between Denain and Roubaix, French Tour de France winner Pauline Ferrand-Prévot finished third.

Belgian cyclist Wout van Aert of Team Visma-Lease a Bike celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the men's Paris-Roubaix cycling race. Jasper Jacobs/Belga/dpa