Our youth team is ready for the cobbles of the “Hell of the North”.
One of the biggest days of the year for cycling fans from all over the world will be April 12, which schedules four versions of Paris-Roubaix: Men’s, Women’s, U23 and Junior.
Our feeder squad, who has enjoyed an impressive first couple of months this year, lines up at the start of this 56th edition with seven riders: first-year U23 Luc Royer, Federico Savino, Boucle de l’Artois podium finisher Joeri Schaper, Jasper Schoofs, Erazem Valjavec – who came close to winning this race as a junior – Matijs Van Strijthem, and Marc Zafra.
The course, which starts from Le Cateau-Cambrésis and takes the peloton to the legendary Roubaix velodrome, is almost 160 kilometers long and features a total of 23 cobblestone sectors, including the iconic Haveluy à Wallers (2.5km), Mons-en-Pévèle (3km) and Carrefour de l’Arbre (2.1km), which can have a huge impact on the final outcome.
Team trainer Tim Declercq talked about Soudal Quick-Step Devo’s ambitions for this weekend: “We are confident that we can do a good race. We aren’t the big favourites, but we are aiming to have some of the guys in the finale. Erazem was runner-up in Roubaix as a junior and he could be one of the riders in the mix for a nice result, but also Jasper has a fair chance of fighting for a good result. The rest of the riders can support them but also prove themselves in the final part of the race, if they have the opportunity. For all of them, it will be a good opportunity to gain experience.”
Photo credit: ©Luc Claessen / Getty Images
