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“Would I have won without it? he asked afterwards. I do not know. I don’t like speculation. Given the bad luck I had, I’m happy to finish on the podium. Afterwards, of course, it’s frustrating because I was in better shape than in the Tour of Flanders. Even after having a puncture, I didn’t give up because Mathieu was not immune to trouble either.
“Once Mathieu has made a hole of twenty seconds, it is impossible to join him.”
The Campinois seemed, in any case, to fly on the cobblestones of the North. “I don’t know if I was stronger than Mathieu but he never pushed me to the limit. His attacks didn’t surprise me. Mathieu, we know him, we know that he is very strong technically, and that he will take all the risks in the turns. But I was fine, I was following him.”
At least, until he dies. “I went from dream to nightmare. Once Mathieu has made a hole of twenty seconds, it is impossible to join him on such a race. Fourth in the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, Wout van Aert will not keep an unforgettable memory of the most important week of his spring.
The puncture at the worst time: this is how Wout van Aert lost Paris-Roubaix (VIDEO)
