Former Roubaix winner Gilbert harshly criticizes Van Aert ahead of the Hell of the North: "Far below his level"

With Paris-Roubaix fast approaching, many cycling fans are sharing their opinions and predictions. Philippe Gilbert, who won the Hell of the North in 2019, has done the same. The Belgian is looking forward to the battle between the top stars of modern cycling, but he’s also critical of fellow countryman Wout van Aert’s preparation.

Read more below the photo!

Mathieu van der Poel

"It would be his greatest performance ever," says Gilbert about a potential Roubaix win for Pogacar

If Van der Poel wants to add a third Paris-Roubaix victory to his name, he’ll have to get past Pogacar. The Slovenian rider from UAE Team Emirates – XRG is making his debut in the Hell of the North, but according to Gilbert, he won’t be caught off guard by the weather. “I don’t think he’s ever really been surprised by crosswinds, apart from his first Tour de France, where he hesitated for a moment. He races very well in the wind.”

Read more below the photo!

Gilbert along with Pogacar

Gilbert criticizes of Van Aert's preparation towards his main goals in Flanders and Roubaix

Alongside Van der Poel and Pogacar, Wout van Aert will also line up in Compiègne with high ambitions. The Belgian showed in the Tour of Flanders that he was on the mend after a few underwhelming weeks, which brought quite a bit of relief in Belgium and at Visma | Lease a Bike. Gilbert, however, is puzzled by that optimism. “Honestly, I don’t understand why. As far as I can remember, Van Aert has been saying since October that this week was his goal. Flanders and Roubaix—that was his big target. But when he started racing again, he was far from his top level. Was his preparation ideal? Wouldn’t it have been better to ride Tirreno-Adriatico or Paris-Nice instead of staying at altitude?”

Just asking the question is enough, according to Gilbert. “To me, it feels like the final 3 or 4 percent he’s missing can only come from racing. So maybe we need to take a good look at the past few months and ask ourselves whether his race schedule was the right one. He might be going into Roubaix in top form, but for Flanders, it was already too late.”

Paris-Roubaix (men) can be followed live April 13 from 11 a.m. on Eurosport or on streaming platforms HBOMax and Discovery+. Paris-Roubaix for Women can be followed live on April 12 from 2:15 p.m.

Read also

Analyst Zonneveld believes Visma | Lease a Bike can create chaos at Paris-Roubaix (Thanks in part to the new crazy tire system)

Van der Poel not yet at his best after illness, but team feels free heading into Roubaix: "How many monuments have they won?"

Besides Kooij, 10 more riders are out of contract at Visma | Lease a Bike: "I don’t know if they have other options"

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Get every week the latest news about CYCLING in your inbox!

Subscribe