{"id":1877291,"date":"2026-04-11T08:01:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T05:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1877291"},"modified":"2026-04-11T08:01:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T05:01:00","slug":"it-started-with-an-omelette-the-story-of-chez-francoise-the-humble-cafe-that-has-become-part-of-the-legend-of-paris-roubaix","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1877291","title":{"rendered":"It started with an omelette \u2013 The story of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, the humble caf\u00e9 that has become &#8216;part of the legend of Paris-Roubaix&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-2180-80.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<p><article class=\"page-content-onecol flex-1\nnews-article article\n\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"widget-area-group widget-area-group-2col flex flex-wrap box-border\">\n<div id=\"widgetArea16\" class=\"widget-area basis-full md:basis-2\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-2-3 page-widget-area-16\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"hero\" id=\"hero\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-hero widget-hero widget-hero-hero widget-hero widget-hero-fter-news\">\n<div class=\"news-article\">\n<header data-component-name=\"Article:Hero\">\n<nav class=\"breadcrumb\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\">\n<ol>\n<li>\nCycling Culture\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/nav>\n<h1>It started with an omelette \u2013 The story of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, the humble caf\u00e9 that has become &#8216;part of the legend of Paris-Roubaix&#8217;<\/h1>\n<div class=\"byline-social\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\nFeatures<\/p>\n<div class=\"text-[13px]\"><span><br \/>\nBy<br \/>\nPatrick Fletcher <\/span><span><br \/>\npublished<br \/>\n<time data-component-name=\"UI:DateTime\" datetime=\"2026-04-11T08:01:00Z\" class=\"relative-date\"><br \/>\n11 April 2026<br \/>\n<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"strapline\">For more than 30 years Fran\u00e7oise Santerre has woven herself into the fabric of the Hell of the North \u2013 Madame Paris-Roubaix shows us around<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"mx-auto mb-4 flex items-center justify-start mx-0 my-5 p-0\" id=\"affiliate-disclaimer\" data-component-name=\"AffiliateDisclaimer\" data-hawk-message=\"Affiliate disclaimer removed because hawk deemed there are no affiliate links on this page\">\n<p class=\"text-700 mb-2 text-[12px] leading-[18px] md:text-[13px] [&amp;&gt;a]:text-gray-700 [&amp;&gt;a]:underline\">\nWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here\u2019s how it works.\n<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"contentparsed\" id=\"content\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-contentparsed widget-content widget-contentparsed-content widget-content-parsed widget-content-parsed-content_document \">\n<div class=\"wcp-item-content\">\n<section class=\"content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"box less-space hero-image-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"mb-0\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-2180-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1920-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><figcaption class=\"mt-2\"><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\" class=\"text-copy bodyCopy auto paywall-locker\">\n<div data-analytics-id=\"utility-bar\" id=\"utility-bar\" class=\"font-ui-heading flex justify-between items-center py-2 border-t border-b border-gray-300 border-solid mb-5 mx-auto\" data-component-name=\"UtilityBar\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"utility-bar\">\n<div class=\"flex gap-2 text-[#333] subcontainer\">\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<div data-component-name=\"Social:Dropdown\" role=\"menu\" id=\"utilitybar__dropdown--share\" aria-labelledby=\"utilitybar__button--share\" class=\"absolute left-0 top-full w-44 bg-white rounded-md shadow-md border border-neutral-200 z-[9996] list-none m-0 py-2 px-3 border-solid\">\n<ul class=\"!m-0\">\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Facebook<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>X<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Pinterest<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Email<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-share-this-article\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nShare this article\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\"><span class=\"ml-1 sm:ml-1.5 font-base text-xs\">0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-join-the-conversation\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nJoin the conversation\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"flex gap-2 text-[#333] subcontainer\">\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<p>Follow us<\/p>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-add-us-as-a-preferred-source-on-google\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nAdd us as a preferred source on Google\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<div role=\"dialog\" class=\"hidden fixed inset-0 z-[999999999999999999] bg-[#33333370] flex items-center justify-center p-6 newsletter-modal\" data-batch-endpoint=\"https:\/\/newsletter-subscribe.futureplc.com\/v2\/submission\/submit_batch\" data-batch-source=\"302\" data-component-name=\"Newsletter:Modal\">\n<div class=\"bg-neutral-100 rounded-xl shadow-xl w-full lg:w-2\/3 xl:w-1\/2 p-6 relative max-h-[95vh] overflow-y-auto\">\n<div id=\"newsletter-capture-modal\">\n<div class=\"sm:text-xl text-base font-bold text-black mb-3 p-0 bg-inherit font-ui-heading\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<p class=\"text-gray-600 mb-4 text-sm sm:text-base font-article-copy\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<div data-component-name=\"Newsletter:NewsletterForm\">\n<hr class=\"modal_hr mt-3 mb-4 h-px bg-gray-300 border-0\">\n<div class=\"modal_footer block text-left opacity-80 text-[.8em] leading-[1.3em] mt-2 [&amp;&gt;a]:underline font-article-copy\">\nBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"newsletter-modal-confirmation\" class=\"hidden\">\n<p class=\"sm:text-xl text-base font-bold text-black mb-3 p-0\">You are now subscribed<\/p>\n<p class=\"text-gray-600 mb-4 text-sm sm:text-base\">Your newsletter sign-up was successful<\/p>\n<div id=\"newsletter-modal-confirmation__userlogin\" class=\"hidden\">\n<hr class=\"my-5 h-px bg-gray-300 border-0\">\n<div class=\"items-start flex flex-col h-full justify-between\">\n<div class=\"flcw-text pb-5 pt-2 leading-[1.3]\"> An account already exists for this email address, please log in.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-subscribe-to-our-newsletter\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nSubscribe to our newsletter\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"elk-fc6f811e-7968-4fbe-a5b0-7920cd0bb17d\">&#8220;Fran\u00e7oise, you are part of the legend of Paris-Roubaix\u201d. So reads one of the messages on the wall of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, a humble caf\u00e9 in Troisvilles that sits at the gateway to the Hell of the North, just around the corner from the opening cobbled sector of this storied Classic.<\/p>\n<p>It was written by \u2018Les Flecheurs du Tour de France\u2019 &#8211; the \u2018arrowmen\u2019, who go around fixing the directional signs that guide the riders along the routes of the Tour and also Paris-Roubaix. They\u2019re always sure to pop in for a coffee, a beer, or even something stronger as they go about their work in the build-up to Roubaix. In fact, the rest of the sign reads: \u201cThe flecheur who does not stop to say hello to Fran\u00e7oise ahead of Paris-Roubaix is not a true flecheur.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-fc6f811e-7968-4fbe-a5b0-7920cd0bb17d-2\">They\u2019re not the only ones for whom the place has become a rite of passage. Raymond Poulidor, Bernard Hinault, Joop Zoetemelk, Gilbert Duclos-Lasalle, Jean Stablinski, Magnus Backstedt, Johan Vansummeren, Thor Hushovd\u2026 the walls are adorned with photos of famous faces who\u2019ve stepped inside.<\/p>\n<p>Magnus Backstedt bused a bunch of his mates over to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his Roubaix win in 2014. Even now, it\u2019s a well-trodden stop for pros on recon &#8211; either to get warm or simply snap a selfie from the roadside.<\/p>\n<p>Every Tuesday before Paris-Roubaix, the race directors from the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) hold the \u2018official\u2019 Paris-Roubaix reconnaissance. It always starts with breakfast at Chez Fran\u00e7oise, and the meal is always an omelette, maintaining a tradition that now stretches back more than 30 years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOmelette was what I served the old directors of the race when they turned up one day in 1992,\u201d the eponymous Fran\u00e7oise says as she welcomes us in on the Friday before the 2026 Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey were out looking for new cobblestone sectors, they were hungry, and they called in to ask if I had any sandwiches. I didn\u2019t have any bread, but I have always kept chickens, so I had plenty of eggs. My husband had made some rabbit terrine, so I served that and some cornichons up alongside the omelettes.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56 slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__header\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<footer class=\"newsletter-form__footer \">By submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.<\/footer>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;Before leaving, they introduced themselves as the organisers of Paris-Roubaix, tapped me on the shoulder and said \u2018we\u2019ll be back\u2019.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>And so a legend was born. The race officials, true to their word, have been back for their omelettes every year since, and over the course of more than three decades, Chez Fran\u00e7oise has woven itself into the fabric of Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"humble-ground-3\">Humble ground<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-1172cc3b-324d-4987-8367-de99cc05fc3c\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">Fran\u00e7oise behind the bar on Friday <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-7b89b6d2-5269-4df8-b6e4-0a912adb5e55\">You\u2019ve no doubt seen it flash by on television, or captured in still by race photographers. The weathered red-brick fa\u00e7ade, the old Jupiler sign (even though Coq Hardi is now the house beer), the signs pointing to Roubaix one way and Paris the other\u2026 it screams Paris-Roubaix, literally and figuratively.<\/p>\n<p>The woman inside the building is Fran\u00e7oise Santerre, who recently celebrated her 70th birthday. She opened the caf\u00e9, which is essentially the front room of her house, alongside her husband, Raymond, in 1980.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople feel at home here,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s only a very small caf\u00e9 in a very small village, but it\u2019s a big family. And for a long time now we have been part of the Paris-Roubaix family \u2013 I\u2019m very proud of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Troisvilles literally translates to \u2018three cities\u2019, but there\u2019s far less to it than that. Even \u2018village\u2019 is an overstatement \u2013 only 800 people live there. It\u2019s a sleepy neighbourhood in a corner of France that has been left behind in the post-industrial age. Disused slag heaps loom large over the otherwise flat landscape, and ancient cobbled farm tracks still cut through it. Come Sunday, these pav\u00e9 sectors will be alive with whirring freehubs and rattling carbon fibre frames \u2013 cutting-edge technology on humble ground.<\/p>\n<p>Chez Fran\u00e7oise itself is as modest as caf\u00e9s come. The bar is small, with seating space for around 20 people, on unfussy tables and chairs. Your coffee will be poured from a filter pot, and if you want milk, then there certainly won\u2019t be anything artistic about it. Cold drinks come from a fridge you\u2019d find in any normal home, and the omelettes are cooked up in a kitchen you\u2019d find in any normal home.<\/p>\n<p>Because this is a normal home. The bar is essentially the front room of the house in which Fran\u00e7oise has lived for over 30 years.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure full-width-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-b3eea848-a5c7-454a-8cff-dab70290671e\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1920-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1920-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" full-width-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">This is a simple caf\u00e9 that serves its community <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-3bdbd8b3-f8eb-495c-ab50-3d0272eb6666\">On the Friday we visit, beers and spirits are being sipped in advance of the midday watershed, and Fran\u00e7oise is shooting the breeze with the punters and taking deliveries from various suppliers. Multiple crates of champagne turn up, and one bottle is immediately opened. Before we had finished chatting with her, a gazebo had sprung up in the yard.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s all gearing up for the big day on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are expecting a lot of people once again. It\u2019s always a big party,\u201d Fran\u00e7oise says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe put up gazebos, out front and out the back, and everyone gathers outside. I have a singer, an accordionist &#8211; everyone has a dance &#8211; we do a barbecue, frites, omelettes, of course. It\u2019s a fantastic atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI hope I get a chance to go out and see the race this time. Last year, I was so busy I didn\u2019t even see the riders go past.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She might not always see them, but as she talks us through the faces in the photos on the wall, she knows the sound a mile off. \u201cThere\u2019s another team going by for their recon,\u201d she says, without turning away from the wall, as Soudal-QuickStep whizzes past.<\/p>\n<p>Fran\u00e7oise has cycling in the blood, and her involvement goes beyond the caf\u00e9\u2019s link with Paris-Roubaix. She also used to run a cycling school for youngsters alongside the grandfather of the former French pro Quentin Jauregui, who cut his teeth there, as did Florian S\u00e9n\u00e9chal. Fran\u00e7oise dreams that S\u00e9n\u00e9chal might one day win Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure full-width-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-ff665154-4473-4087-85c8-92856da8e4b7\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1840-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1840-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" full-width-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">A cobblestone and other memorabilia adorn the shelves behind the bar at Chez Fran\u00e7oise <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-d7014653-9626-4a29-9b97-00d6023e7153\">She is also the president of the Reagir organisation, which she set up in 2007 as a way to protect and preserve the cobbled tracks in the local area. It\u2019s very much in the spirit of the Amis de Paris-Roubaix (Friends of Paris-Roubaix), and she will help them out from time to time if they need help further afield. \u201cThat\u2019s me there,\u201d she says, pointing to a photo of a team of workers with shovels and picks. \u201cWe laid 1,250 cobblestones that day. It\u2019s hard work, but it\u2019s important work &#8211; like the omelettes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On top of that, she works as an assistant to the Mayor of Troisvilles, and her dining table, separate from the bar area but where the ASO breakfast is held, is awash with invitations she\u2019s preparing for an alumnus dinner in May. She is also somehow involved in the pigeon racing circuit, regularly offering accommodation to the practitioners of the sport, mainly from Belgium, who sip Ricard in the bar as they wait for their birds to return from locations as far-flung as Barcelona.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m always running around doing something. That\u2019s my life. I have my potatoes to plant out next week, too,\u201d Fran\u00e7oise says.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"in-the-cafe-you-tell-of-your-struggles-and-your-joys-3\">In the caf\u00e9 you tell of your struggles and your joys<\/h2>\n<p id=\"elk-2caa5a1d-ea9d-4c4c-8ee8-b22686a2ce32\">Keeping busy keeps Fran\u00e7oise from slowing down. That would have been an easy thing to happen since her husband died seven years ago. \u201cHe had pancreatic cancer. I cared for him for two and a half years. We would have celebrated 50 years of marriage this year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The emotions are raw, but at Chez Fran\u00e7oise, that\u2019s just the way it goes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn a caf\u00e9 like this, a simple village caf\u00e9, you tell of your troubles, and you tell of your joys,&#8221; she explains.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor me, my clients are like my family. My regulars, I see them every day, and I get to know everyone who visits from further afield. The couple outside are from Brittany. Yesterday I had a group of Italians who came to eat here and brought me some cake. I still get Christmas cards from an Englishman who worked in Troisvilles for six months.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-d79e02c2-e782-4251-ba42-2d13f545bf25\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">A customer sips a drink on the Friday before Paris-Roubaix <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-f886aca1-784f-417d-9d72-77386a71ea0b\">\u201cI\u2019m still of the old era,\u201d she adds. \u201cThierry Gouvenou, the Paris-Roubaix director, always comments on how cycling has changed &#8211; it\u2019s all about money now. Life has changed, too. But the caf\u00e9 will always be about conviviality. You give someone a glass, and they tell you what\u2019s going on in their life. People come here for comfort. That\u2019s my job.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Humility, humanity, community \u2013 fundamental values of cycling, a sport built upon the modest mode of transport of the common man. It\u2019s little wonder that Paris-Roubaix would align itself with Chez Fran\u00e7oise in this way. It\u2019s a race that for 120 years has eschewed glamour and laid bare the harshness and hardship of this corner of France.<\/p>\n<p>If you invented Paris-Roubaix now, it would be a made-for-television spectacle of thrills, spills, and clippable TikTok reels. But what the would-be modernisers of the sport are not always so quick to appreciate is that the beauty of cycling lies in the way that, over time, it weaves itself into places like Chez Fran\u00e7oise; into life itself.<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-eab3c1c5-0373-4771-9856-814fe255dea1\"><em><strong>Get unlimited access to our unrivalled 2026 Spring Classics coverage with a Cyclingnews subscription. We&#8217;ll bring you breaking news, reports, and analysis from some of the biggest races on the calendar, including Milan-San Remo, Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders. <\/strong><\/em><u><em><strong>Find out more.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"block mb-5\" id=\"articleTag\" data-component-name=\"PostArticleLinks\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"post-article-links\">\n<div class=\"border-b border-b-black border-solid py-2.5 text-black font-bold uppercase\">TOPICS<\/div>\n<nav class=\"py-2.5 flex gap-2.5 flex-wrap\" data-analytics-id=\"article-tag\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-tag\">\n<p>Road<\/p>\n<\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"slice-container-authorBio-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56\" class=\"slice-container slice-author-bio authorBio-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56 slice-container-authorBio\">\n<div class=\"author author__default-layout author--separator author--collapsible\" data-hydrate=\"true\">\n<div class=\"author__header\">\n<div class=\"author__avatar-block\">\n<figure class=\"image-wrapped__wrapper\" data-bordeaux-image-check=\"false\">\n<div class=\"image-wrapped__widthsetter\">\n<div class=\"image-wrapped__aspect-padding\">\n<div><source class=\"author__avatar image-wrapped__image image__image\" type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH-140-80.jpg.webp 140w\" sizes=\"99vw\" data-normal=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH.jpg\" data-original-mos=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH.jpg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH.jpg\" data-pin-nopin=\"true\" data-slice-image=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__heading\">\n<div class=\"author__name\">Patrick Fletcher<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__role\">Deputy Editor<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__bio-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"author__biography\">\n<p>Patrick is an NCTJ-accredited journalist with a bachelor\u2019s degree in modern languages (French and Spanish) and a decade\u2019s experience in digital sports media, largely within the world of cycling. He re-joined Cyclingnews as Deputy Editor in February 2026, having previously spent eight years on staff between 2015 and 2023. In between, he was Deputy Editor at GCN and spent 18 months working across the sports portfolio at Future before returning to the cycling press pack. Patrick works across Cyclingnews\u2019 wide-ranging output, assisting the Editor in global content strategy, with a particular focus on shaping CN&#8217;s news operation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"mt-6 lg:px-0 relative max-w-[1070px] mx-auto viafoura-twig-component px-4\" data-component-name=\"Viafoura:Comments\" data-nosnippet data-community-guidelines-text=\"&lt;p class='vfcustom-community-guidelines'&gt;Please follow our &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/about\/#section-community-guidelines&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;community guidelines&lt;\/a&gt;.&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-join-the-conversation-text=\"Join the Conversation\">\n<div class=\"absolute top-0 left-0 w-full h-full flex items-center justify-center z-50 bg-white\/90 border-1\">\n<div class=\"p-2 text-center\">\n<p class=\"mb-3 !text-lg\">You must confirm your public display name before commenting<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-3 !text-sm\">Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section class=\"mx-2 my-5 sm:mx-0\">\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-adviser:hybrid\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Read more<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">A mud-bath, an over-inflated spare tyre, and a domestique holding the cobblestone trophy \u2013 Servais Knaven relives his iconic Paris-Roubaix victory 25 years on<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Record-breakers, comebacks, and underdogs at Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The most memorable editions of the past 25 years<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Everything the Tour of Flanders can tell us about Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The Monument quintuple, no Remco Evenepoel, and Lotte Kopecky&#8217;s chances<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Pro Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;High trees catch a lot of wind&#8217; \u2013 From intense media scrutiny to social media abuse, the Classics bring out the pressure of expectation in Belgium<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The cobbled Classics storylines we&#8217;re looking forward to \u2013 From Van der Poel and Poga\u010dar on the cusp of history to a different Demi Vollering and a resurgent Mads Pedersen<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Tech &amp; Components<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Conquering the cobbles \u2013 A brief history of Paris-Roubaix bike evolution<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The return of the greats, cycling&#8217;s newest mega talent and &#8216;grande ciclismo&#8217; \u2013 What I&#8217;m excited to see at this year&#8217;s Strade Bianche<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">There&#8217;s beauty in Poga\u010dar&#8217;s dominance, magic in Siena, and too much of a good thing on the route \u2013 Reflections from Strade Bianche 2026<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Inside Strade Bianche &#8211; Cyclingnews joins EF Education-Oatly for their reconnaissance over white gravel roads of Tuscany<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;Fantastic entertainment&#8217; or &#8216;slapstick comedy&#8217;? How gravel has infiltrated WorldTour racing, and what the pros really think of it<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Cat Ferguson&#8217;s Spring Classics column: Tour of Flanders is the toughest, most powerful race on the calendar, and that is felt in every pedal stroke<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Reflections from the men&#8217;s Milan-San Remo \u2013 Poga\u010dar overcomes the chaos, prefers focaccia to a 2027 return, McNulty&#8217;s work, and praise for Van der Poel and Pedersen<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-category\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in Cycling Culture<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Quiz! Can you name every Paris-Roubaix podium in the last 10 years?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">British man dies during Tour of Flanders amateur ride, two other riders resuscitated<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch Tour of Flanders 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for Ronde van Vlaanderen, schedules<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Quiz! Can you name all the Tour of Flanders winners since 2000?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch Dwars door Vlaanderen 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for the midweek cobbled Classic<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Initiating clubs dispute AusCycling decision to rule out bulk of requested special general meeting resolutions as invalid<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch In Flanders Fields 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for the new Gent-Wevelgem<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch the E3 Saxo Classic 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for the cobbled Classic<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-840-80.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-650-80.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-500-80.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-450-80.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-320-80.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Training<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Zwift goes outdoors with new Recommendation feature, plus &#8216;Level 100&#8217; limit removed in latest round of updates<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Exclusive Deal: Grab a free $50 Amazon Gift Card + up to 77% off NordVPN and watch Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, and Tour de France from anywhere in the world<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch Volta a Catalunya 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV coverage<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I didn&#8217;t have a gravel bike&#8217; \u2013 Cameron Mason sets unofficial FKT on bikepacking trail on aero road bike stuffed with tyres 6mm over clearance<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-articletype\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in Features<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Pro Bikes<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Tadej Poga\u010dar has thrown the kitchen sink at his bike for Paris-Roubaix and I love everything about it<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Paris-Roubaix brings Tadej Poga\u010dar vs Mathieu van der Poel round three in 2026, but who has the better supporting cast for the hellish pav\u00e9? \u2013 Analysis<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Tech &amp; Components<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Unorthodox and indecisive: Everything we know from Paris-Roubaix recon so far<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The men&#8217;s and women&#8217;s Paris-Roubaix are both on the same day this year \u2013 great plan for more spectators, or disadvantaging the women&#8217;s race?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Kit &amp; Accesories<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The Rapha Archive Sale ends this weekend, and it&#8217;s your last chance to save up to 50% on some of our favourite Rapha apparel \u2013 Gear up for summer now at a fraction of the cost<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Quiz! Can you name every Paris-Roubaix podium in the last 10 years?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Pro Bikes<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Lab tested: How does your pedalling technique change as you ride on cobbles, and how can that affect a pro rider&#8217;s equipment choice?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Tech &amp; Components<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Paris-Roubaix tech predictions 2026: What we expect to see in the pits at the Queen of the Classics<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Record-breakers, comebacks, and underdogs at Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The most memorable editions of the past 25 years<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Cat Ferguson&#8217;s Spring Classics column: Tour of Flanders is the toughest, most powerful race on the calendar, and that is felt in every pedal stroke<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Everything the Tour of Flanders can tell us about Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The Monument quintuple, no Remco Evenepoel, and Lotte Kopecky&#8217;s chances<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Emerging Talents<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I love how much you can push on a climb&#8217; &#8211; A Hot Wheels two-wheeler and mountain bike descents lead young Brazilian Henrique Bravo to first UCI win at age 19<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"widgetArea17\" class=\"widget-area md:basis-1\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-1-3 page-widget-area-17\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"dynamic\" id=\"popular-data\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-dynamic widget-popular-data widget-dynamic-popular-data widget-dynamic-fter-popular-box\">\n<div class=\"wdn-fte-pb pos-relative space-t20\n\"><\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-popularBox\" class=\"slice-container popular-box-slice popularBox slice-container-popularBox\">\n<section data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"popular-box\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label__tab popular-box__label__tab--active\" role=\"heading\">LATEST ARTICLES<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<ol class=\"popular-box__articles-list popular-box__articles-list--active\">\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__image-wrapper\">\n<div><source class=\"popular-box__article-list__image image__image\" type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-320-80.jpg.webp 320w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-640-80.jpg.webp 640w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-720-80.jpg.webp 720w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w\" sizes=\"99vw\" data-normal=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL.jpg\" data-original-mos=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL.jpg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL.jpg\" data-pin-nopin=\"true\" data-slice-image=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">1<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Itzulia Basque Country stage 6 LIVE &#8211; 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Can you name every Paris-Roubaix podium in the last 10 years?<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">4<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Lidl-Trek sports director Kim Andersen excluded from Itzulia Basque Country after his team car collided with Markel Beloki<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">5<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Tadej Poga\u010dar has thrown the kitchen sink at his bike for Paris-Roubaix and I love everything about it<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"page-content-onecol flex-1\nnews-article article\n\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"widget-area-group widget-area-group-2col flex flex-wrap box-border\">\n<div id=\"widgetArea16\" class=\"widget-area basis-full md:basis-2\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-2-3 page-widget-area-16\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"hero\" id=\"hero\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-hero widget-hero widget-hero-hero widget-hero widget-hero-fter-news\">\n<div class=\"news-article\">\n<header data-component-name=\"Article:Hero\">\n<nav class=\"breadcrumb\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\">\n<ol>\n<li>\nCycling Culture\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/nav>\n<h1>It started with an omelette \u2013 The story of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, the humble caf\u00e9 that has become &#8216;part of the legend of Paris-Roubaix&#8217;<\/h1>\n<div class=\"byline-social\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\nFeatures<\/p>\n<div class=\"text-[13px]\"><span><br \/>\nBy<br \/>\nPatrick Fletcher <\/span><span><br \/>\npublished<br \/>\n<time data-component-name=\"UI:DateTime\" datetime=\"2026-04-11T08:01:00Z\" class=\"relative-date\"><br \/>\n11 April 2026<br \/>\n<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"strapline\">For more than 30 years Fran\u00e7oise Santerre has woven herself into the fabric of the Hell of the North \u2013 Madame Paris-Roubaix shows us around<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"mx-auto mb-4 flex items-center justify-start mx-0 my-5 p-0\" id=\"affiliate-disclaimer\" data-component-name=\"AffiliateDisclaimer\" data-hawk-message=\"Affiliate disclaimer removed because hawk deemed there are no affiliate links on this page\">\n<p class=\"text-700 mb-2 text-[12px] leading-[18px] md:text-[13px] [&amp;&gt;a]:text-gray-700 [&amp;&gt;a]:underline\">\nWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here\u2019s how it works.\n<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"contentparsed\" id=\"content\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-contentparsed widget-content widget-contentparsed-content widget-content-parsed widget-content-parsed-content_document \">\n<div class=\"wcp-item-content\">\n<section class=\"content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"box less-space hero-image-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"mb-0\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-2180-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1920-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><figcaption class=\"mt-2\"><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\" class=\"text-copy bodyCopy auto paywall-locker\">\n<div data-analytics-id=\"utility-bar\" id=\"utility-bar\" class=\"font-ui-heading flex justify-between items-center py-2 border-t border-b border-gray-300 border-solid mb-5 mx-auto\" data-component-name=\"UtilityBar\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"utility-bar\">\n<div class=\"flex gap-2 text-[#333] subcontainer\">\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<div data-component-name=\"Social:Dropdown\" role=\"menu\" id=\"utilitybar__dropdown--share\" aria-labelledby=\"utilitybar__button--share\" class=\"absolute left-0 top-full w-44 bg-white rounded-md shadow-md border border-neutral-200 z-[9996] list-none m-0 py-2 px-3 border-solid\">\n<ul class=\"!m-0\">\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Facebook<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>X<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Pinterest<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Email<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-share-this-article\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nShare this article\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\"><span class=\"ml-1 sm:ml-1.5 font-base text-xs\">0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-join-the-conversation\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nJoin the conversation\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"flex gap-2 text-[#333] subcontainer\">\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<p>Follow us<\/p>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-add-us-as-a-preferred-source-on-google\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nAdd us as a preferred source on Google\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<div role=\"dialog\" class=\"hidden fixed inset-0 z-[999999999999999999] bg-[#33333370] flex items-center justify-center p-6 newsletter-modal\" data-batch-endpoint=\"https:\/\/newsletter-subscribe.futureplc.com\/v2\/submission\/submit_batch\" data-batch-source=\"302\" data-component-name=\"Newsletter:Modal\">\n<div class=\"bg-neutral-100 rounded-xl shadow-xl w-full lg:w-2\/3 xl:w-1\/2 p-6 relative max-h-[95vh] overflow-y-auto\">\n<div id=\"newsletter-capture-modal\">\n<div class=\"sm:text-xl text-base font-bold text-black mb-3 p-0 bg-inherit font-ui-heading\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<p class=\"text-gray-600 mb-4 text-sm sm:text-base font-article-copy\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<div data-component-name=\"Newsletter:NewsletterForm\">\n<hr class=\"modal_hr mt-3 mb-4 h-px bg-gray-300 border-0\">\n<div class=\"modal_footer block text-left opacity-80 text-[.8em] leading-[1.3em] mt-2 [&amp;&gt;a]:underline font-article-copy\">\nBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"newsletter-modal-confirmation\" class=\"hidden\">\n<p class=\"sm:text-xl text-base font-bold text-black mb-3 p-0\">You are now subscribed<\/p>\n<p class=\"text-gray-600 mb-4 text-sm sm:text-base\">Your newsletter sign-up was successful<\/p>\n<div id=\"newsletter-modal-confirmation__userlogin\" class=\"hidden\">\n<hr class=\"my-5 h-px bg-gray-300 border-0\">\n<div class=\"items-start flex flex-col h-full justify-between\">\n<div class=\"flcw-text pb-5 pt-2 leading-[1.3]\"> An account already exists for this email address, please log in.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-subscribe-to-our-newsletter\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nSubscribe to our newsletter\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"elk-fc6f811e-7968-4fbe-a5b0-7920cd0bb17d\">&#8220;Fran\u00e7oise, you are part of the legend of Paris-Roubaix\u201d. So reads one of the messages on the wall of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, a humble caf\u00e9 in Troisvilles that sits at the gateway to the Hell of the North, just around the corner from the opening cobbled sector of this storied Classic.<\/p>\n<p>It was written by \u2018Les Flecheurs du Tour de France\u2019 &#8211; the \u2018arrowmen\u2019, who go around fixing the directional signs that guide the riders along the routes of the Tour and also Paris-Roubaix. They\u2019re always sure to pop in for a coffee, a beer, or even something stronger as they go about their work in the build-up to Roubaix. In fact, the rest of the sign reads: \u201cThe flecheur who does not stop to say hello to Fran\u00e7oise ahead of Paris-Roubaix is not a true flecheur.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-fc6f811e-7968-4fbe-a5b0-7920cd0bb17d-2\">They\u2019re not the only ones for whom the place has become a rite of passage. Raymond Poulidor, Bernard Hinault, Joop Zoetemelk, Gilbert Duclos-Lasalle, Jean Stablinski, Magnus Backstedt, Johan Vansummeren, Thor Hushovd\u2026 the walls are adorned with photos of famous faces who\u2019ve stepped inside.<\/p>\n<p>Magnus Backstedt bused a bunch of his mates over to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his Roubaix win in 2014. Even now, it\u2019s a well-trodden stop for pros on recon &#8211; either to get warm or simply snap a selfie from the roadside.<\/p>\n<p>Every Tuesday before Paris-Roubaix, the race directors from the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) hold the \u2018official\u2019 Paris-Roubaix reconnaissance. It always starts with breakfast at Chez Fran\u00e7oise, and the meal is always an omelette, maintaining a tradition that now stretches back more than 30 years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOmelette was what I served the old directors of the race when they turned up one day in 1992,\u201d the eponymous Fran\u00e7oise says as she welcomes us in on the Friday before the 2026 Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey were out looking for new cobblestone sectors, they were hungry, and they called in to ask if I had any sandwiches. I didn\u2019t have any bread, but I have always kept chickens, so I had plenty of eggs. My husband had made some rabbit terrine, so I served that and some cornichons up alongside the omelettes.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56 slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__header\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<footer class=\"newsletter-form__footer \">By submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.<\/footer>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;Before leaving, they introduced themselves as the organisers of Paris-Roubaix, tapped me on the shoulder and said \u2018we\u2019ll be back\u2019.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>And so a legend was born. The race officials, true to their word, have been back for their omelettes every year since, and over the course of more than three decades, Chez Fran\u00e7oise has woven itself into the fabric of Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"humble-ground-3\">Humble ground<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-1172cc3b-324d-4987-8367-de99cc05fc3c\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">Fran\u00e7oise behind the bar on Friday <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-7b89b6d2-5269-4df8-b6e4-0a912adb5e55\">You\u2019ve no doubt seen it flash by on television, or captured in still by race photographers. The weathered red-brick fa\u00e7ade, the old Jupiler sign (even though Coq Hardi is now the house beer), the signs pointing to Roubaix one way and Paris the other\u2026 it screams Paris-Roubaix, literally and figuratively.<\/p>\n<p>The woman inside the building is Fran\u00e7oise Santerre, who recently celebrated her 70th birthday. She opened the caf\u00e9, which is essentially the front room of her house, alongside her husband, Raymond, in 1980.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople feel at home here,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s only a very small caf\u00e9 in a very small village, but it\u2019s a big family. And for a long time now we have been part of the Paris-Roubaix family \u2013 I\u2019m very proud of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Troisvilles literally translates to \u2018three cities\u2019, but there\u2019s far less to it than that. Even \u2018village\u2019 is an overstatement \u2013 only 800 people live there. It\u2019s a sleepy neighbourhood in a corner of France that has been left behind in the post-industrial age. Disused slag heaps loom large over the otherwise flat landscape, and ancient cobbled farm tracks still cut through it. Come Sunday, these pav\u00e9 sectors will be alive with whirring freehubs and rattling carbon fibre frames \u2013 cutting-edge technology on humble ground.<\/p>\n<p>Chez Fran\u00e7oise itself is as modest as caf\u00e9s come. The bar is small, with seating space for around 20 people, on unfussy tables and chairs. Your coffee will be poured from a filter pot, and if you want milk, then there certainly won\u2019t be anything artistic about it. Cold drinks come from a fridge you\u2019d find in any normal home, and the omelettes are cooked up in a kitchen you\u2019d find in any normal home.<\/p>\n<p>Because this is a normal home. The bar is essentially the front room of the house in which Fran\u00e7oise has lived for over 30 years.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure full-width-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-b3eea848-a5c7-454a-8cff-dab70290671e\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1920-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1920-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" full-width-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">This is a simple caf\u00e9 that serves its community <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-3bdbd8b3-f8eb-495c-ab50-3d0272eb6666\">On the Friday we visit, beers and spirits are being sipped in advance of the midday watershed, and Fran\u00e7oise is shooting the breeze with the punters and taking deliveries from various suppliers. Multiple crates of champagne turn up, and one bottle is immediately opened. Before we had finished chatting with her, a gazebo had sprung up in the yard.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s all gearing up for the big day on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are expecting a lot of people once again. It\u2019s always a big party,\u201d Fran\u00e7oise says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe put up gazebos, out front and out the back, and everyone gathers outside. I have a singer, an accordionist &#8211; everyone has a dance &#8211; we do a barbecue, frites, omelettes, of course. It\u2019s a fantastic atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI hope I get a chance to go out and see the race this time. Last year, I was so busy I didn\u2019t even see the riders go past.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She might not always see them, but as she talks us through the faces in the photos on the wall, she knows the sound a mile off. \u201cThere\u2019s another team going by for their recon,\u201d she says, without turning away from the wall, as Soudal-QuickStep whizzes past.<\/p>\n<p>Fran\u00e7oise has cycling in the blood, and her involvement goes beyond the caf\u00e9\u2019s link with Paris-Roubaix. She also used to run a cycling school for youngsters alongside the grandfather of the former French pro Quentin Jauregui, who cut his teeth there, as did Florian S\u00e9n\u00e9chal. Fran\u00e7oise dreams that S\u00e9n\u00e9chal might one day win Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure full-width-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-ff665154-4473-4087-85c8-92856da8e4b7\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1840-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1840-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" full-width-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">A cobblestone and other memorabilia adorn the shelves behind the bar at Chez Fran\u00e7oise <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-d7014653-9626-4a29-9b97-00d6023e7153\">She is also the president of the Reagir organisation, which she set up in 2007 as a way to protect and preserve the cobbled tracks in the local area. It\u2019s very much in the spirit of the Amis de Paris-Roubaix (Friends of Paris-Roubaix), and she will help them out from time to time if they need help further afield. \u201cThat\u2019s me there,\u201d she says, pointing to a photo of a team of workers with shovels and picks. \u201cWe laid 1,250 cobblestones that day. It\u2019s hard work, but it\u2019s important work &#8211; like the omelettes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On top of that, she works as an assistant to the Mayor of Troisvilles, and her dining table, separate from the bar area but where the ASO breakfast is held, is awash with invitations she\u2019s preparing for an alumnus dinner in May. She is also somehow involved in the pigeon racing circuit, regularly offering accommodation to the practitioners of the sport, mainly from Belgium, who sip Ricard in the bar as they wait for their birds to return from locations as far-flung as Barcelona.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m always running around doing something. That\u2019s my life. I have my potatoes to plant out next week, too,\u201d Fran\u00e7oise says.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"in-the-cafe-you-tell-of-your-struggles-and-your-joys-3\">In the caf\u00e9 you tell of your struggles and your joys<\/h2>\n<p id=\"elk-2caa5a1d-ea9d-4c4c-8ee8-b22686a2ce32\">Keeping busy keeps Fran\u00e7oise from slowing down. That would have been an easy thing to happen since her husband died seven years ago. \u201cHe had pancreatic cancer. I cared for him for two and a half years. We would have celebrated 50 years of marriage this year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The emotions are raw, but at Chez Fran\u00e7oise, that\u2019s just the way it goes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn a caf\u00e9 like this, a simple village caf\u00e9, you tell of your troubles, and you tell of your joys,&#8221; she explains.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor me, my clients are like my family. My regulars, I see them every day, and I get to know everyone who visits from further afield. The couple outside are from Brittany. Yesterday I had a group of Italians who came to eat here and brought me some cake. I still get Christmas cards from an Englishman who worked in Troisvilles for six months.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-d79e02c2-e782-4251-ba42-2d13f545bf25\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">A customer sips a drink on the Friday before Paris-Roubaix <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-f886aca1-784f-417d-9d72-77386a71ea0b\">\u201cI\u2019m still of the old era,\u201d she adds. \u201cThierry Gouvenou, the Paris-Roubaix director, always comments on how cycling has changed &#8211; it\u2019s all about money now. Life has changed, too. But the caf\u00e9 will always be about conviviality. You give someone a glass, and they tell you what\u2019s going on in their life. People come here for comfort. That\u2019s my job.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Humility, humanity, community \u2013 fundamental values of cycling, a sport built upon the modest mode of transport of the common man. It\u2019s little wonder that Paris-Roubaix would align itself with Chez Fran\u00e7oise in this way. It\u2019s a race that for 120 years has eschewed glamour and laid bare the harshness and hardship of this corner of France.<\/p>\n<p>If you invented Paris-Roubaix now, it would be a made-for-television spectacle of thrills, spills, and clippable TikTok reels. But what the would-be modernisers of the sport are not always so quick to appreciate is that the beauty of cycling lies in the way that, over time, it weaves itself into places like Chez Fran\u00e7oise; into life itself.<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-eab3c1c5-0373-4771-9856-814fe255dea1\"><em><strong>Get unlimited access to our unrivalled 2026 Spring Classics coverage with a Cyclingnews subscription. We&#8217;ll bring you breaking news, reports, and analysis from some of the biggest races on the calendar, including Milan-San Remo, Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders. <\/strong><\/em><u><em><strong>Find out more.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"block mb-5\" id=\"articleTag\" data-component-name=\"PostArticleLinks\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"post-article-links\">\n<div class=\"border-b border-b-black border-solid py-2.5 text-black font-bold uppercase\">TOPICS<\/div>\n<nav class=\"py-2.5 flex gap-2.5 flex-wrap\" data-analytics-id=\"article-tag\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-tag\">\n<p>Road<\/p>\n<\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"slice-container-authorBio-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56\" class=\"slice-container slice-author-bio authorBio-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56 slice-container-authorBio\">\n<div class=\"author author__default-layout author--separator author--collapsible\" data-hydrate=\"true\">\n<div class=\"author__header\">\n<div class=\"author__avatar-block\">\n<figure class=\"image-wrapped__wrapper\" data-bordeaux-image-check=\"false\">\n<div class=\"image-wrapped__widthsetter\">\n<div class=\"image-wrapped__aspect-padding\">\n<div><source class=\"author__avatar image-wrapped__image image__image\" type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH-140-80.jpg.webp 140w\" sizes=\"99vw\" data-normal=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH.jpg\" data-original-mos=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH.jpg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2QoJgeVtEMbCKNujw2pLoH.jpg\" data-pin-nopin=\"true\" data-slice-image=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__heading\">\n<div class=\"author__name\">Patrick Fletcher<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__role\">Deputy Editor<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__bio-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"author__biography\">\n<p>Patrick is an NCTJ-accredited journalist with a bachelor\u2019s degree in modern languages (French and Spanish) and a decade\u2019s experience in digital sports media, largely within the world of cycling. He re-joined Cyclingnews as Deputy Editor in February 2026, having previously spent eight years on staff between 2015 and 2023. In between, he was Deputy Editor at GCN and spent 18 months working across the sports portfolio at Future before returning to the cycling press pack. Patrick works across Cyclingnews\u2019 wide-ranging output, assisting the Editor in global content strategy, with a particular focus on shaping CN&#8217;s news operation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"mt-6 lg:px-0 relative max-w-[1070px] mx-auto viafoura-twig-component px-4\" data-component-name=\"Viafoura:Comments\" data-nosnippet data-community-guidelines-text=\"&lt;p class='vfcustom-community-guidelines'&gt;Please follow our &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/about\/#section-community-guidelines&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;community guidelines&lt;\/a&gt;.&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-join-the-conversation-text=\"Join the Conversation\">\n<div class=\"absolute top-0 left-0 w-full h-full flex items-center justify-center z-50 bg-white\/90 border-1\">\n<div class=\"p-2 text-center\">\n<p class=\"mb-3 !text-lg\">You must confirm your public display name before commenting<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-3 !text-sm\">Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section class=\"mx-2 my-5 sm:mx-0\">\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-adviser:hybrid\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Read more<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AJBdrHxRz8WKjcmH8AGKsG-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">A mud-bath, an over-inflated spare tyre, and a domestique holding the cobblestone trophy \u2013 Servais Knaven relives his iconic Paris-Roubaix victory 25 years on<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Record-breakers, comebacks, and underdogs at Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The most memorable editions of the past 25 years<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Everything the Tour of Flanders can tell us about Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The Monument quintuple, no Remco Evenepoel, and Lotte Kopecky&#8217;s chances<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/v2f6yDEapxtfhcsY9Wmqi5-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Pro Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;High trees catch a lot of wind&#8217; \u2013 From intense media scrutiny to social media abuse, the Classics bring out the pressure of expectation in Belgium<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nV6EeTstsrSed7sBoahJ9a-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The cobbled Classics storylines we&#8217;re looking forward to \u2013 From Van der Poel and Poga\u010dar on the cusp of history to a different Demi Vollering and a resurgent Mads Pedersen<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AhitWYzxYLQUpDw3GhKfME-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Tech &amp; Components<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Conquering the cobbles \u2013 A brief history of Paris-Roubaix bike evolution<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uVay2h9sfPE9H9LsHgUEQP-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The return of the greats, cycling&#8217;s newest mega talent and &#8216;grande ciclismo&#8217; \u2013 What I&#8217;m excited to see at this year&#8217;s Strade Bianche<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/o2ipbChNUBJaXjMjqXvg6n-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">There&#8217;s beauty in Poga\u010dar&#8217;s dominance, magic in Siena, and too much of a good thing on the route \u2013 Reflections from Strade Bianche 2026<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/MfheqpAfRkz9rCdftPoyMT-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Inside Strade Bianche &#8211; Cyclingnews joins EF Education-Oatly for their reconnaissance over white gravel roads of Tuscany<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/3omQQdn7pnJDCQB4NrziNV-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;Fantastic entertainment&#8217; or &#8216;slapstick comedy&#8217;? How gravel has infiltrated WorldTour racing, and what the pros really think of it<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Cat Ferguson&#8217;s Spring Classics column: Tour of Flanders is the toughest, most powerful race on the calendar, and that is felt in every pedal stroke<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UYBWnkk388X72MbP4jk9Ao-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Reflections from the men&#8217;s Milan-San Remo \u2013 Poga\u010dar overcomes the chaos, prefers focaccia to a 2027 return, McNulty&#8217;s work, and praise for Van der Poel and Pedersen<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-category\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in Cycling Culture<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Quiz! Can you name every Paris-Roubaix podium in the last 10 years?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/d5HGJnbPTXQqsTnMU7amSc-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">British man dies during Tour of Flanders amateur ride, two other riders resuscitated<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/UMyFh97unPqxQfqWZ7fKSo-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch Tour of Flanders 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for Ronde van Vlaanderen, schedules<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LicjXPEYhXddW3XAUkQwgK-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Quiz! Can you name all the Tour of Flanders winners since 2000?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/uqVXGohAYmE4UWxGTa3hnK-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch Dwars door Vlaanderen 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for the midweek cobbled Classic<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/k7dMLVyDHrJ5anwEdjNxoh-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Initiating clubs dispute AusCycling decision to rule out bulk of requested special general meeting resolutions as invalid<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/jjMqmaQAZb7gjFT7M7bakm-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch In Flanders Fields 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for the new Gent-Wevelgem<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/F8zRotETnkVfZhSVHkWkPn-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch the E3 Saxo Classic 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV channels for the cobbled Classic<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-840-80.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-650-80.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-500-80.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-450-80.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/nzyms38B5JYoedxhBm7Lnn-320-80.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Training<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Zwift goes outdoors with new Recommendation feature, plus &#8216;Level 100&#8217; limit removed in latest round of updates<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/p4kUxfPHKdVsk8AM95SafR-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Exclusive Deal: Grab a free $50 Amazon Gift Card + up to 77% off NordVPN and watch Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, and Tour de France from anywhere in the world<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GStSdG87jGA2erKwyq6BLP-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Streaming<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">How to watch Volta a Catalunya 2026 \u2013 Live streams, TV coverage<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PjUBfVjMcNYPSUMiD38gPX-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I didn&#8217;t have a gravel bike&#8217; \u2013 Cameron Mason sets unofficial FKT on bikepacking trail on aero road bike stuffed with tyres 6mm over clearance<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-articletype\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in Features<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/a5C3dpRF7WWJohLQ76g4dN-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Pro Bikes<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Tadej Poga\u010dar has thrown the kitchen sink at his bike for Paris-Roubaix and I love everything about it<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/DFD27epbgCN4Rkw6bzdbBa-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Paris-Roubaix brings Tadej Poga\u010dar vs Mathieu van der Poel round three in 2026, but who has the better supporting cast for the hellish pav\u00e9? \u2013 Analysis<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PfFJku8cuv2vkBRGzVoidc-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Tech &amp; Components<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Unorthodox and indecisive: Everything we know from Paris-Roubaix recon so far<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/soSfqPEiQo4KQLbDoXVbGL-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The men&#8217;s and women&#8217;s Paris-Roubaix are both on the same day this year \u2013 great plan for more spectators, or disadvantaging the women&#8217;s race?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/Artg48p9S739SfACBmSFAE-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Kit &amp; Accesories<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The Rapha Archive Sale ends this weekend, and it&#8217;s your last chance to save up to 50% on some of our favourite Rapha apparel \u2013 Gear up for summer now at a fraction of the cost<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EUsU4rLRSvpekyM5P9sexe-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Culture<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Quiz! Can you name every Paris-Roubaix podium in the last 10 years?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/2MvFTTab4bEReW8Heb7nj4-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Pro Bikes<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Lab tested: How does your pedalling technique change as you ride on cobbles, and how can that affect a pro rider&#8217;s equipment choice?<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/ndf7K7MFJsnbr736yhQ64N-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Cycling Tech &amp; Components<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Paris-Roubaix tech predictions 2026: What we expect to see in the pits at the Queen of the Classics<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RWB8Yhvx5PcTwru9BtaPxY-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Record-breakers, comebacks, and underdogs at Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The most memorable editions of the past 25 years<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/EX4hRi9pXrjGizQoJjHMYc-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Cat Ferguson&#8217;s Spring Classics column: Tour of Flanders is the toughest, most powerful race on the calendar, and that is felt in every pedal stroke<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-840-80.png.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-650-80.png.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-500-80.png.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-450-80.png.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/aWp3CcerQq6gptxa76AMjF-320-80.png.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Everything the Tour of Flanders can tell us about Paris-Roubaix \u2013 The Monument quintuple, no Remco Evenepoel, and Lotte Kopecky&#8217;s chances<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9] relative mb-3.5\">\n    <source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-840-80.jpg.webp 840w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-500-80.jpg.webp 500w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-450-80.jpg.webp 450w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/vNpespyv3oAsYb5KgUEk9b-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 900px) 925px, (min-width: 700px) 450px, calc(100vw - 48px)\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Emerging Talents<\/span><span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I love how much you can push on a climb&#8217; &#8211; A Hot Wheels two-wheeler and mountain bike descents lead young Brazilian Henrique Bravo to first UCI win at age 19<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"widgetArea17\" class=\"widget-area md:basis-1\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-1-3 page-widget-area-17\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"dynamic\" id=\"popular-data\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-dynamic widget-popular-data widget-dynamic-popular-data widget-dynamic-fter-popular-box\">\n<div class=\"wdn-fte-pb pos-relative space-t20\n\"><\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-popularBox\" class=\"slice-container popular-box-slice popularBox slice-container-popularBox\">\n<section data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"popular-box\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label__tab popular-box__label__tab--active\" role=\"heading\">LATEST ARTICLES<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<ol class=\"popular-box__articles-list popular-box__articles-list--active\">\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__image-wrapper\">\n<div><source class=\"popular-box__article-list__image image__image\" type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-320-80.jpg.webp 320w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-640-80.jpg.webp 640w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-720-80.jpg.webp 720w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w\" sizes=\"99vw\" data-normal=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL.jpg\" data-original-mos=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL.jpg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4bkUwoiA6BawBQkLgVu9pL.jpg\" data-pin-nopin=\"true\" data-slice-image=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">1<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Itzulia Basque Country stage 6 LIVE &#8211; More climbing on the menu for final stage of the race<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">2<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Even more new prototype Dura-Ace parts spotted on Jasper Philipsen&#8217;s Canyon Endurace CFR for Paris-Roubaix <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">3<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Quiz! Can you name every Paris-Roubaix podium in the last 10 years?<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">4<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Lidl-Trek sports director Kim Andersen excluded from Itzulia Basque Country after his team car collided with Markel Beloki<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">5<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">Tadej Poga\u010dar has thrown the kitchen sink at his bike for Paris-Roubaix and I love everything about it<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"news-article\">\n<header data-component-name=\"Article:Hero\">\n<nav class=\"breadcrumb\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\">\n<ol>\n<li>\nCycling Culture\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/nav>\n<h1>It started with an omelette \u2013 The story of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, the humble caf\u00e9 that has become &#8216;part of the legend of Paris-Roubaix&#8217;<\/h1>\n<div class=\"byline-social\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\nFeatures<\/p>\n<div class=\"text-[13px]\"><span><br \/>\nBy<br \/>\nPatrick Fletcher <\/span><span><br \/>\npublished<br \/>\n<time data-component-name=\"UI:DateTime\" datetime=\"2026-04-11T08:01:00Z\" class=\"relative-date\"><br \/>\n11 April 2026<br \/>\n<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"strapline\">For more than 30 years Fran\u00e7oise Santerre has woven herself into the fabric of the Hell of the North \u2013 Madame Paris-Roubaix shows us around<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"mx-auto mb-4 flex items-center justify-start mx-0 my-5 p-0\" id=\"affiliate-disclaimer\" data-component-name=\"AffiliateDisclaimer\" data-hawk-message=\"Affiliate disclaimer removed because hawk deemed there are no affiliate links on this page\">\n<p class=\"text-700 mb-2 text-[12px] leading-[18px] md:text-[13px] [&amp;&gt;a]:text-gray-700 [&amp;&gt;a]:underline\">\nWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. 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So reads one of the messages on the wall of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, a humble caf\u00e9 in Troisvilles that sits at the gateway to the Hell of the North, just around the corner from the opening cobbled sector of this storied Classic.<\/p>\n<p>It was written by \u2018Les Flecheurs du Tour de France\u2019 &#8211; the \u2018arrowmen\u2019, who go around fixing the directional signs that guide the riders along the routes of the Tour and also Paris-Roubaix. They\u2019re always sure to pop in for a coffee, a beer, or even something stronger as they go about their work in the build-up to Roubaix. In fact, the rest of the sign reads: \u201cThe flecheur who does not stop to say hello to Fran\u00e7oise ahead of Paris-Roubaix is not a true flecheur.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-fc6f811e-7968-4fbe-a5b0-7920cd0bb17d-2\">They\u2019re not the only ones for whom the place has become a rite of passage. Raymond Poulidor, Bernard Hinault, Joop Zoetemelk, Gilbert Duclos-Lasalle, Jean Stablinski, Magnus Backstedt, Johan Vansummeren, Thor Hushovd\u2026 the walls are adorned with photos of famous faces who\u2019ve stepped inside.<\/p>\n<p>Magnus Backstedt bused a bunch of his mates over to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his Roubaix win in 2014. Even now, it\u2019s a well-trodden stop for pros on recon &#8211; either to get warm or simply snap a selfie from the roadside.<\/p>\n<p>Every Tuesday before Paris-Roubaix, the race directors from the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) hold the \u2018official\u2019 Paris-Roubaix reconnaissance. It always starts with breakfast at Chez Fran\u00e7oise, and the meal is always an omelette, maintaining a tradition that now stretches back more than 30 years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOmelette was what I served the old directors of the race when they turned up one day in 1992,\u201d the eponymous Fran\u00e7oise says as she welcomes us in on the Friday before the 2026 Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey were out looking for new cobblestone sectors, they were hungry, and they called in to ask if I had any sandwiches. I didn\u2019t have any bread, but I have always kept chickens, so I had plenty of eggs. My husband had made some rabbit terrine, so I served that and some cornichons up alongside the omelettes.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-HcfnTnFbu7nXuHBqLzhU56 slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__header\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<footer class=\"newsletter-form__footer \">By submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.<\/footer>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;Before leaving, they introduced themselves as the organisers of Paris-Roubaix, tapped me on the shoulder and said \u2018we\u2019ll be back\u2019.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>And so a legend was born. The race officials, true to their word, have been back for their omelettes every year since, and over the course of more than three decades, Chez Fran\u00e7oise has woven itself into the fabric of Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"humble-ground-3\">Humble ground<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-1172cc3b-324d-4987-8367-de99cc05fc3c\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-818-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kxkCYpNaSt9k3qunCej8eS-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">Fran\u00e7oise behind the bar on Friday <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-7b89b6d2-5269-4df8-b6e4-0a912adb5e55\">You\u2019ve no doubt seen it flash by on television, or captured in still by race photographers. The weathered red-brick fa\u00e7ade, the old Jupiler sign (even though Coq Hardi is now the house beer), the signs pointing to Roubaix one way and Paris the other\u2026 it screams Paris-Roubaix, literally and figuratively.<\/p>\n<p>The woman inside the building is Fran\u00e7oise Santerre, who recently celebrated her 70th birthday. She opened the caf\u00e9, which is essentially the front room of her house, alongside her husband, Raymond, in 1980.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople feel at home here,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s only a very small caf\u00e9 in a very small village, but it\u2019s a big family. And for a long time now we have been part of the Paris-Roubaix family \u2013 I\u2019m very proud of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Troisvilles literally translates to \u2018three cities\u2019, but there\u2019s far less to it than that. Even \u2018village\u2019 is an overstatement \u2013 only 800 people live there. It\u2019s a sleepy neighbourhood in a corner of France that has been left behind in the post-industrial age. Disused slag heaps loom large over the otherwise flat landscape, and ancient cobbled farm tracks still cut through it. Come Sunday, these pav\u00e9 sectors will be alive with whirring freehubs and rattling carbon fibre frames \u2013 cutting-edge technology on humble ground.<\/p>\n<p>Chez Fran\u00e7oise itself is as modest as caf\u00e9s come. The bar is small, with seating space for around 20 people, on unfussy tables and chairs. Your coffee will be poured from a filter pot, and if you want milk, then there certainly won\u2019t be anything artistic about it. Cold drinks come from a fridge you\u2019d find in any normal home, and the omelettes are cooked up in a kitchen you\u2019d find in any normal home.<\/p>\n<p>Because this is a normal home. The bar is essentially the front room of the house in which Fran\u00e7oise has lived for over 30 years.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure full-width-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-b3eea848-a5c7-454a-8cff-dab70290671e\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1920-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1920-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/kwtAkgax8KqkNSUgystd9k-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" full-width-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">This is a simple caf\u00e9 that serves its community <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-3bdbd8b3-f8eb-495c-ab50-3d0272eb6666\">On the Friday we visit, beers and spirits are being sipped in advance of the midday watershed, and Fran\u00e7oise is shooting the breeze with the punters and taking deliveries from various suppliers. Multiple crates of champagne turn up, and one bottle is immediately opened. Before we had finished chatting with her, a gazebo had sprung up in the yard.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s all gearing up for the big day on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are expecting a lot of people once again. It\u2019s always a big party,\u201d Fran\u00e7oise says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe put up gazebos, out front and out the back, and everyone gathers outside. I have a singer, an accordionist &#8211; everyone has a dance &#8211; we do a barbecue, frites, omelettes, of course. It\u2019s a fantastic atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI hope I get a chance to go out and see the race this time. Last year, I was so busy I didn\u2019t even see the riders go past.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She might not always see them, but as she talks us through the faces in the photos on the wall, she knows the sound a mile off. \u201cThere\u2019s another team going by for their recon,\u201d she says, without turning away from the wall, as Soudal-QuickStep whizzes past.<\/p>\n<p>Fran\u00e7oise has cycling in the blood, and her involvement goes beyond the caf\u00e9\u2019s link with Paris-Roubaix. She also used to run a cycling school for youngsters alongside the grandfather of the former French pro Quentin Jauregui, who cut his teeth there, as did Florian S\u00e9n\u00e9chal. Fran\u00e7oise dreams that S\u00e9n\u00e9chal might one day win Paris-Roubaix.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure full-width-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-ff665154-4473-4087-85c8-92856da8e4b7\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1840-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1840-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1440-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1280-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1200-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-1024-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-970-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mrJ6HsYjou2GLbBfzUikZa-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" full-width-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">A cobblestone and other memorabilia adorn the shelves behind the bar at Chez Fran\u00e7oise <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-d7014653-9626-4a29-9b97-00d6023e7153\">She is also the president of the Reagir organisation, which she set up in 2007 as a way to protect and preserve the cobbled tracks in the local area. It\u2019s very much in the spirit of the Amis de Paris-Roubaix (Friends of Paris-Roubaix), and she will help them out from time to time if they need help further afield. \u201cThat\u2019s me there,\u201d she says, pointing to a photo of a team of workers with shovels and picks. \u201cWe laid 1,250 cobblestones that day. It\u2019s hard work, but it\u2019s important work &#8211; like the omelettes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On top of that, she works as an assistant to the Mayor of Troisvilles, and her dining table, separate from the bar area but where the ASO breakfast is held, is awash with invitations she\u2019s preparing for an alumnus dinner in May. She is also somehow involved in the pigeon racing circuit, regularly offering accommodation to the practitioners of the sport, mainly from Belgium, who sip Ricard in the bar as they wait for their birds to return from locations as far-flung as Barcelona.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m always running around doing something. That\u2019s my life. I have my potatoes to plant out next week, too,\u201d Fran\u00e7oise says.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"in-the-cafe-you-tell-of-your-struggles-and-your-joys-3\">In the caf\u00e9 you tell of your struggles and your joys<\/h2>\n<p id=\"elk-2caa5a1d-ea9d-4c4c-8ee8-b22686a2ce32\">Keeping busy keeps Fran\u00e7oise from slowing down. That would have been an easy thing to happen since her husband died seven years ago. \u201cHe had pancreatic cancer. I cared for him for two and a half years. We would have celebrated 50 years of marriage this year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The emotions are raw, but at Chez Fran\u00e7oise, that\u2019s just the way it goes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn a caf\u00e9 like this, a simple village caf\u00e9, you tell of your troubles, and you tell of your joys,&#8221; she explains.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor me, my clients are like my family. My regulars, I see them every day, and I get to know everyone who visits from further afield. The couple outside are from Brittany. Yesterday I had a group of Italians who came to eat here and brought me some cake. I still get Christmas cards from an Englishman who worked in Troisvilles for six months.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-d79e02c2-e782-4251-ba42-2d13f545bf25\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 2560w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1920w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1440w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1280w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1200w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-818-80.jpg.webp 970w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-650-80.jpg.webp 650w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-480-80.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NRnRivfZeQQFM3hAJpsDiU-320-80.jpg.webp 320w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"caption-text\">A customer sips a drink on the Friday before Paris-Roubaix <\/span><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Will Jones)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-f886aca1-784f-417d-9d72-77386a71ea0b\">\u201cI\u2019m still of the old era,\u201d she adds. \u201cThierry Gouvenou, the Paris-Roubaix director, always comments on how cycling has changed &#8211; it\u2019s all about money now. Life has changed, too. But the caf\u00e9 will always be about conviviality. You give someone a glass, and they tell you what\u2019s going on in their life. People come here for comfort. That\u2019s my job.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Humility, humanity, community \u2013 fundamental values of cycling, a sport built upon the modest mode of transport of the common man. It\u2019s little wonder that Paris-Roubaix would align itself with Chez Fran\u00e7oise in this way. It\u2019s a race that for 120 years has eschewed glamour and laid bare the harshness and hardship of this corner of France.<\/p>\n<p>If you invented Paris-Roubaix now, it would be a made-for-television spectacle of thrills, spills, and clippable TikTok reels. But what the would-be modernisers of the sport are not always so quick to appreciate is that the beauty of cycling lies in the way that, over time, it weaves itself into places like Chez Fran\u00e7oise; into life itself.<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-eab3c1c5-0373-4771-9856-814fe255dea1\"><em><strong>Get unlimited access to our unrivalled 2026 Spring Classics coverage with a Cyclingnews subscription. We&#8217;ll bring you breaking news, reports, and analysis from some of the biggest races on the calendar, including Milan-San Remo, Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders. <\/strong><\/em><u><em><strong>Find out more.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/cycling-culture\/it-started-with-an-omelette-the-story-of-chez-francoise-the-humble-cafe-that-has-become-part-of-the-legend-of-paris-roubaix\/&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/93a59gAv2MRyQCHeCKdkaf-2180-80.jpg&#8221;] Cycling Culture It started with an omelette \u2013 The story of Chez Fran\u00e7oise, the humble caf\u00e9 that has become &#8216;part of the legend of Paris-Roubaix&#8217; Features By Patrick Fletcher published 11 April 2026 For more than 30 years Fran\u00e7oise Santerre has woven herself into the fabric of the Hell of the North [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,68],"class_list":["post-1877291","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-cyclingnews-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1877291","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1877291"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1877291\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1877291"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1877291"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1877291"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}