Yves Lampaert achieved an excellent result with a 5th place in this heroic edition of Paris-Roubaix. Still, Deceuninck-Quick Step could have done a lot more.
Sports director Wilfried Peeters: “The race actually started perfectly for us. We had Davide Ballerini and Tim Declercq with us in the breakaway of 30 men. The peloton with all our favorites followed at a reasonable distance of 2 minutes.”
“But just before the Bos van Wallers we lost Florian Sénéchal with bad luck. In the Bos itself, Yves Lampaert and Kasper Asgreen joined with bad luck.”
“Then it becomes difficult, because you cannot easily reach it by car. Because it is so narrow, it is the worst place to have a puncture. It then takes a lot of forces to return.”
And then there is the case of Sénéchal. The Frenchman escaped from the sight of everything and everyone and was even passed by the support car. Something that, according to Peeters, is not inconceivable due to the hectic pace.
“We are also not right behind the peloton. I saw on the images that he was standing on the side, but I did not see him myself.”
“We also posted males of ours on every strip. So it’s bad luck that Sénéchal was out of our field of view, it’s cursing that I passed him.”
A rider can endure a lot, but once you end up between the cars…
“The downside is that bad luck just happened to our best men”, Peeters continues.
“Sénéchal was in good shape, his preparation went well with a view to the World Cup and Roubaix. He had the bad luck of his life and never got into the race. A rider can endure a lot, but once you end up between the cars, it is it harder.”
“Only Lampaert was able to make up for it, at one point he was with Mathieu van der Poel. When they drove to the leading group, he was
leak again. Then you know it’s going to be hard. Only Stybar didn’t experience anything, but he didn’t have the right legs. That’s the sad thing.”
Under normal circumstances, Paris-Roubaix will take place in the spring. Does that save a lot of hectic?
“The farmers are starting to remove maize and harvest beets. They drive around with their tractors. That makes it dirtier. Kudos to the organization for cleaning it up like that.”
“But sand and mud are always there with a rain edition. We all made it through unscathed. The bike in particular suffers the hardest, because water and sand are not a good combination.”
“Nevertheless, we will continue to see it, just look at the Strade Bianche and Paris-Tours. They are things that the enthusiast carries with them and wants to do themselves. It is beautifully and beautifully portrayed on TV. It is the investment in special bicycles well worth it.”
“I think it gives the riders a kick. Those are things that stay with me. We do it for recognition and sensation. As long as it stays safe. Someone who suffers and bends his knees, that’s what people love. It motivates the youth to also race.”
