The Trouée d’Arenberg is one of the most famous stretches of road in all of professional cycling. It’s also one of the oldest; the cobblestones that make up the two-kilometre stretch of road were laid over a century ago, and due to Arenberg’s popularity, the stones themselves have been known to be liberated by souvenir hunters from time to time.
That appeared to be the case this year, when cobblestones went missing on more than one cobblestone sector, potentially creating a major safety risk, as reported on by De Telegraaf.
“Thieves, we are dealing with them more and more. On this section [Arenberg], ‘Het Bos van Wallers’, and also the ‘Carrefour de l’Arbre’ sector, we have a lot of extra work,” said Paris-Roubaix race director Thierry Gouvenou.
Article continues below
You may like
What we saw in Arenberg on Thursday
A handful of holes at the Arenberg trench appear to have been repaired (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
In a handful of places, the five-star forest of the Arenberg section appears to have been repaired, and in one place near the beginning of the sector, a replacement stone has been installed, with ‘April’ and ‘10.4.26’ written on the face in black marker pen, perhaps referencing the repair date.
The replacement stone, which is roughly twice the size of most of the cobblestones that feature in the section, also has a circular hole in it, though we don’t know the reason for this.
In a couple of other places, holes seem to have been filled, but not with replacement stones. One we spotted had been filled with some sort of sandy gravel, another with jagged coal spoil.
This hole appeared to be filled with coal waste, which is readily found in the forest around Arenberg (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
In general, however, the Arenberg sector appeared to be in good health; the disturbed sections were few and far between.
Paris-Roubaix has been crossing the Arenberg trench since 1968, and a healthy amount of work goes into maintaining these legendary sectors each spring.
The Les Amis de Paris Roubaix (Friends of Paris-Roubaix) group help to maintain all the cobbled sectors throughout the year, carrying out repairs and fighting for the preservation of these ancient tracks. Herds of goats are even brought into Arenberg in the weeks leading up to the race, with the animals eating the grass that grows between the stones.
Race organisers ASO are ultimately responsible for the state of the cobbled sectors come race day, and are set to be on high alert on Sunday morning for any more last-minute repairs that need to be made.
Get unlimited access to our unrivalled 2026 Spring Classics coverage with a Cyclingnews subscription. We’ll bring you breaking news, reports, and analysis from some of the biggest races on the calendar, including Milan-San Remo, Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders. Find out more.