Maëlle Grossetête loved her first Paris-Roubaix, at least as much as she hated it. On October 2, 2021, exhausted and smeared with mud, the French cyclist from the FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine team had crossed the finish line 60and and penultimate participant to have finished on time out of the 129 starters of the first female version of the “Hell of the North”.
With the rain as a guest, expected but feared, the falls in the 2021 edition – shifted to autumn due to Covid-19 – had been numerous and, after a daunting ordeal, the Briton Elizabeth Deignan (Trek-Segafredo) had won alone in the velodrome of the “city of a thousand chimneys”.
This year, the “queen of the classics” has returned to its spring calendar – only postponed by a week compared to the usual pre-Covid-19 schedule, due to the first round of the presidential election. Enough to hope for slightly more lenient conditions, Saturday April 16. And Maëlle Grossetête intends to do better on the formidable cobblestones of “the race of his dreams”.
More than 124 kilometres, seventeen cobbled sections
A month earlier, under a big blue sky, a light wind and a perfect temperature – neither too hot nor too cool -, the Haute-Savoyarde and her teammates, Grace Brown, Emilia Fahlin and Marie Le Net, had taken part in a reconnaissance of the plot. No major changes for this 2022 edition: a route just extended by eight kilometers – 124.7 in total –, from Denain (North) to the Roubaix velodrome, and still seventeen cobblestone sectors to “absorb”, including Mons- en-Pévèle or the crossroads of the Tree.
“Recognition is a very important moment in the preparation”, insists Stephen Delcourt, the general manager of the FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the only French women’s team in the World Tour. This is where the final adjustments and hardware tests are played out. “Do the girls want gel under the bar tape [ruban placé autour du guidon pour bénéficier d’une meilleure adhérence] ? A double handlebar? Gloves ? No gloves? Tire type: tubular or tubeless? »he develops.
Paris-Roubaix: bonuses are revalued for runners
ASO (Amaury Sport Organisation), the organizing company of Paris-Roubaix, has reassessed the bonuses that will be awarded to competitors in the second edition of the race, Saturday April 16.
The winner of the “Hell of the North” will receive 20,000 euros, while in October 2021 the Briton Lizzie Deignan, victorious in the first women’s edition of the event, had received only 1,535 euros.
The total prize pool will reach 50,000 euros, when it amounts to 90,000 euros for the men’s race, including 30,000 euros for the winner.
Paris-Roubaix thus joins the Tour of Flanders, whose winner this year received an equivalent sum (20,000 euros), identical to that of the winner of the men’s race.
The Dutch classic Amstel Gold Race has also chosen to align the prizes for the men’s and women’s races, although at a lower level: 16,000 euros for the winners.
These details, the spectators do not necessarily take the measure when they watch the race by interposed screens. However, the technical dimension plays an essential role in performance, especially in a meeting like Paris-Roubaix, one of the most demanding races on the circuit. “Cycling is a difficult sport, you have to be tough on evil. Paris-Roubaix is a very specific race in this sense: you have to be on your bike to last the length of the cobblestones”summarizes Stephen Delcourt.
Grace Brown, for example, lowered her tire pressure. More comfortable and less tiring, according to the Australian. “Even on a reconnaissance like today, there will be blisters, blisters, it’s never pleasant… But generally, two days later, they want to go back”, laughs his manager. Before confiding in a burst of laughter: “Me, I will never be made to ride a bike on these cobblestones. Even the cyclosportive [épreuve ouverte aux pratiquants amateurs], they can wait for me a long time. »
“Landmarks at each sector”
The four riders of the FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine are not at their first laps on the cobblestones of the North. “We had started, in August 2020, to do a specific course, because we had to race at the end of the season, but it was canceled due to the Covid. Last year, we also came in March to do a “reco”, then a final reminder just before the deadline. For some, it’s the fourth time they’ve taken on the course in these conditions.”says Nicolas Maire, the team’s sports director.
However, apart from Maëlle Grossetête, only Marie Le Net has already competed in the classic. In 2021, she had finished 38and. “Having already raced Paris-Roubaix brings an additional visionargues the young woman. It gives points of reference to each sector. I say to myself: “Here, there is this corner, remember, the last time how the race turned, other teams passed in front, there, it is important to be placed…” »
In the radio, this day of March, the sporting director and his high performance counterpart, Flavien Soenen, gave the runners details on the duration of the next sectors, their difficulties, indications of course. “It’s a bit like what we do in the race”underlines the latter.
But, he insists, the particularity of Paris-Roubaix also lies in its psychological dimension. “It’s a race different from all the othershe continues. It’s important for the girls to know where they are going to put the wheels, to tell themselves that they have already done it. »
After more than three hours in the saddle, Grace Brown, new recruit of the FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine, is all smiles. “It’s so exciting. The cobblestones here are so different than anywhere elseshe breathes. Even if it’s very uncomfortable, it’s a special moment. Now I can’t wait to race for good. »
The young woman knows it, the year 2022 marks a turning point in women’s cycling, with the big return of the Tour de France, at the end of July. “For years, men have had the chance to experience the atmosphere that goes with [le Tour et Paris-Roubaix]. I am so happy that we can now experience them too. »