Updated April 13, 2026 05:53AM
Paris-Roubaix, it’s a race of a thousand narratives.
Every rider who makes it across the gnarled cobblestones and into the ancient velodrome has tales to tell after the Hell of the North.
And away from the bikes, the hype of “The Queen of the Classics” conjures all sorts of curious back-stories and sub-plots.
This year was no exception – both Paris-Roubaix and Paris-Roubaix Femmes were puncture-fests riddled with oddities and what-ifs.
Here’s a wrap of a few of the intriguing things you might have missed before Wout van Aert and Franziska Koch rattled to career-defining victories Sunday at Paris-Roubaix:
Did LeBron James curse Mathieu van der Poel?
Lebron sent Van der Poel a hype-message before his Paris-Roubaix was derailed by disasters. (Photo: Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
LeBron James made a surprise social media stop-off in the Paris-Roubaix universe this weekend.
Encased in a bike helmet the size of a small planet, “King James” took to Instagram to send a message of support to three-time champion Mathieu van der Poel ahead of the Dutchman’s big day.
“Nothing but respect for greatness at the highest level. MVDP is just a different breed. The preparation. The mindset. The willingness to embrace the pain. That’s what separates legends from the rest,” James said in his social media message.
“Go be great. Go make history,” he continued. “The world is watching for a reason.”
From the court to the cobbles: 🇺🇸 LeBron James sends a message to 🇳🇱 Mathieu van der Poel ahead of Paris-Roubaix
🎥 IG: LeBron James pic.twitter.com/2F9GRQ1p3I
— Domestique (@Domestique___) April 12, 2026
Inspiring words from one sporting great to another, indeed.
But did LeBron inadvertently cast some sort of spell on mighty MVDP?
Van der Poel’s chance at a historic four-peat deflated in a calamitous collection of punctures and a pedal fiasco in the depths of the Arenberg trench.
It was a disastrous spell almost unknown by the man who typically surfs cobbles like he’s on a casual Sunday ride and dodges misfortune like he’s a magician.
And why was LeBron sending his stoke to Van der Poel anyway?
Sure, the 41-year-old is a noted bike fan and no doubt a very nice guy.
Maybe he just wanted to show support?
Sorry, but the skeptic in us thinks it might have been a canny activation prompted by their shared bike sponsor, Canyon.
Spectator collisions shape women’s and junior Paris-Roubaix
Brand was one of two riders who suffered spectacular collisions with spectators on Sunday. (Photo: Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
Lucinda Brand’s quest to top her career-best third-place finish at Hell of the North came to a spectacular, catastrophic end on the Carrefour de l’Arbre on Sunday.
The charging Dutchwoman brushed a spectator as she took a smooth but risky line down the gutter of the five-star sector, and was sent clattering to the stones.
The incident took her out of the second chasing group of Lotte Kopecky and budding Coloradan Megan Jastrab, and ended her shot at glory.
But it could have been worse.
Reels shared by nearby members of the crowd show how close the following moto came to plowing over the rider and her bike.
And Brand wasn’t the only one who came unstuck in pursuit of a smooth ride over the pavé.
The very same scenario ended Soren Bruyère Joumard’s chances earlier that day as he led the junior race.
These collisions aren’t the first of their type. They won’t be the last, either.
Riders often look to exploit the grassy verges and smoother stones along the outer edge of the pavé. Bike-crazed fans wielding booze bottles, chip packets, and smartphones are only inches away.
Brand was lucky to come away from her crash unhurt.
Incredibly, she even chased back to finish 10th behind FDJ’s breakout winner, Koch, and was lucid enough to accept shared responsibility for the incident in a message she wrote on Instagram.
Joumard didn’t share the same fortune. The young Frenchman was able to ride to the finish but had to settle for 70th.
Titanic tires for Tadej Pogačar
Pogačar was rolling a seriously beefy tire on his front wheel on Sunday. (Photo: Bernard PAPON / POOL / AFP)
Not even a set of tires that looked suited for a tractor could save Tadej Pogačar from three punctures on Sunday.
According to Bike Radar, Pogačar used a 35mm Continental GP5000S TR on the front wheel of his Colnago Y1RS. When inflated on his Enve rims, it ballooned to 38mm.
Just look at the images – this thing is huge.
Pogačar used a 32mm tire on the back, which Bike Radar believes inflated to closer to 35mm.
It’s thought that the mismatch was largely due to limited frame clearance rather than performance improvement.
Riders have been opting for increasingly wide tires in pursuit of better comfort and rolling resistance across the heinous stones of Paris-Roubaix.
In recent years, tire widths ballooned from 28mm to 30mm to 32mm as huge, squishy, tubeless setups made old-school tubulars redundant.
The development of 35mm options expanded the trend to a wild new level this weekend.
But if Pogačar’s myriad of misfortunes on Sunday proves one thing, it’s that there’s no puncture-proofing Hell.
Was Pogačar’s sprint stymied by a flat?
Yet another plot-twist for Pogačar: His teammate thinks he sprinted on a flat tire. (Photo: asper Jacobs / Belga Mag via AFP)
While we’re on the topic of Tadej’s tires – did the world champion have to sprint against Van Aert on a flat?
His teammate Antonio Morgado thinks so.
“It looked like he had a problem with the rear tire, so we checked the bike [after the race]. It didn’t feel right. It seemed like he had a puncture at the back,” Morgado told In De Leidustri.
Could that have been the difference for Pogačar? Was his chance for a historic monument sweep deflated by a sub-optimal sprint set-up?
It’s not been confirmed that the tire was flat. But it certainly won’t have helped a rider who already had “spaghetti legs” if it were.
Three Kopeckýs and one Kopecky at Paris-Roubaix
Matyas (second left) and Tomas (second right) shown here earlier in 2026, were joined by sister Julia in the Roubaix velodrome. (Photo: Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
Momma and Poppa Kopecký had a very nerve-rattling day on Sunday. Three of their kids raced Paris-Roubaix on Sunday in what might be a first in pro cycling.
Matyas (23) and his elder brother Tomáš (26) finished 30th and 61st respectively for Unibet Rose Rockets in the men’s race.
And it turns out they didn’t have to wait in the velodrome too long to welcome their baby sister, Julia. The 21-year-old finished 15th in the Femmes for SD Worx-Protime only an hour or so later.
And no, the Czech trio is no relation to Flandrien queen, Lotte Kopecky.