Saturday’s race starts with 4 circuits in and around the northern town of Denain after which they will head on to 18 stretches of the famous cobbles. Many of the world’s top riders are out in force to become the second champion of this race as last year’s winner Lizzie Deignan is pregnant.
The race is keenly anticipated by fans and riders alike and Elisa Balsamo exemplifies this in her comments on the 2021 first edition; ‘It was a special day! A really hard and crazy one. I was exhausted at the end of the race but I really wanted to go all the way to the end, especially since it was my first time with the rainbow jersey. I crashed but I made it. So I was very happy to arrive in the velodrome. I think it took me a week to recover afterwards! My hands were so painful… It was a hard one, but an epic one. And I hope we’ll have a dry one this time!’. There were only 61 finishers within the time delay.
Another exciting race is in prospect. The race is tailor made for strong riders not afraid of the cobbles as we have more than 29 km with cobblestones roads.
The Previous Top 10
Wheather
Clear skies are forecast in Denain Saturday with little chance of rain and after a chilly start to the day temperatures should rise to 12 degrees for the start. By the time they reach Roubaix temperatures should be in the 18 degrees region. Maximum windspeeds forecast are 15kms/h so everything points to a fast race with dry conditions.
Who to watch
CC2004
Marianne Vos – She finished runner up in the first edition last year and performs well on the cobbles, she is in form with a recent 7th at Strade Bianche and 2nd at Gent-Wevelgem. The one they all have to beat.
Emma Norsgaard – In good form when winning Le Samyn , she has also been 5th at Gent-Wevelgem, 6th at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and is a rider with flair on the cobbles , finished 6th in the first edition in 2021.
Chantal Van Den Broek-Blaak – She finished a strong 10th last year in a group containing Norsgaard and Bastianelli. This year’s form is solid with a 3rd in Tour of Flanders after starting the big move & 4th in Trofeo Binda.
Marta Bastianelli – Finished 5th last year and is also in good form with 8 top 10s , including winning Omloop Hageland, 3rd at Nokere Koerse and Brugge De Panne, 5th at Dwars door Vlaanderen and Ronde Van Drenthe. The consistant Italian should go well.
Ellen Van Dijk – Ellen can never be ruled out as she can attack from a long way out and can use her TT skills to her advantage. Not to be overlooked.
***** Marianne Vos
**** Emma Norsgaard
*** Chantal Blaak
** Marta Bastianelli
* Ellen Van Dijk
LULU
Lotte Kopecky shows great form, and will be my favorite after great performances in the Ronde Van Vlaanderen and Strade Bianche wins this season.
Marianne Vos, will be there again after her strong showing last year and she has to be considered an obvious contender.
Marta Bastianelli is having a good spring classic season at the moment, and I feel she can improve on her 5th place in the 2021 edition.
Emma Norsgaard, like Bastianelli performed well in the first edition and has claims on form.
Chantal Van den Broeke-Blaak is well capable of a podium finish and on her day is to be feared while Elise Chabbey is no stranger to the top ten, and in a hard race such as this must be respected.
***** Lotte Kopecky
**** Marianne Vos
*** Marta Bastianielli
** Emma Norsgaard
* Chantal Van Den Broeke-Blaak or Elise Chabbey
Mark Miwurdz
Marta Cavalli rode a great race last year and although only 9th has showed she is in form recently and more benign conditions Saturday could suit her.
Marianne Vos will certainly be in contention as the race reaches its climax, she was unlucky last year to meet Lizzie Deignan in that kind of form.
Marta Bastianelli is another difficult to leave out. The Italians are challenging the Dutch for all round supremecy in the Women’s game and there was a lot to like about her ride in this last year.
Silvia Persico is having a good season and I felt her 7th in last week’s Brabantse Pijl flew under the radar. Secondly it is always great to see Valcar up there. Persico represents a lively outsider in this challenging race.
Elisa Longo Borghini took a podium place here last year and could present the greatest threat from Trek-Segafredo.
***** Marta Cavalli
**** Marianne Vos
*** Marta Bastianelli
** Silvia Persico
* Elisa Longo Borghini
Mufcfaan
Marianne Vos: She will do her best to add this race to her flawless palmares. She could prevail either from a solo attack or from a sprint.
Lotte Kopecky: Just like Christophe Laporte at Jumbo Visma, she has bloomed at SD works. One of the most feared riders for Saturday.
Chantal Blaak: Delivered Lotte Kopecky to the victory in Flanders which suggests she could be as strong as her team-mate.
Ellen Van Dijk: The European Road Champion and most importantly the world time trial champion has been in great shape since last year. This season her performances have been under the radar just because she is in the same team as Elisa Balsamo. Barring any mishap, she can win with a long solo attack.
***** Marianne Vos
**** Lotte Kopecky
*** Chantal Blaak
** Ellen Van Dijk
