Participants Paris-Roubaix 2025 | First teams have completed selection for The Hell of the North!

So there are more top riders than ever, as world champion Tadej Pogacar announced that he would start in Paris-Roubaix after a long period of rumors. The Slovenian rider hopes to achieve two special things. A victory would establish Pogi's name among riders such as Mathieu van der Poel, Peter Sagan, Eddy Merckx, Rick van Looy, and Bernard Hinault, who have all triumphed in Roubaix while wearing the rainbow jersey. And if the Slovenian wins on Sunday, he will join an exclusive club that includes Merckx and Hinault, as he will be the third rider to win The Hell of the North as the reigning Tour de France winner.

If Pogacar wants to earn a place in the history books, he must beat the strong competition. Two-time Roubaix winner Van der Poel, for example, is out for revenge after losing the Tour of Flanders last Sunday. Mads Pedersen also showed excellent form with an amazing solo in Gent-Wevelgem. Furthermore, the recovering Wout van Aert and the always-strong Filippo Ganna will also be favorites on the cobblestones in northern France.

The riders will start - as has been the case since 1977 - in Compiègne, after which they will cover just under 260 kilometers. The brave riders who venture into The Hell of the North can keep a fairly steady pace for the first hundred kilometers, after which no less than thirty (!) cobblestone sections will follow. This includes the famous stretches of the Trouée d'Arenberg and Mons-en-Pévèle.