The Paris-Roubaix is becoming tougher

ASO has just presented the route of the Paris-Roubaix Hauts de France, the new official name of the event, with some small modifications compared to last year’s route, aiming to break the race from the very first cobblestone sections.

The Paris-Roubaix changes its name and presents the route for the 2026 edition

On April 12, the 123rd edition of the Paris-Roubaix will take place. Well, from now on we will have to get used to saying Paris-Roubaix Hauts de France, a name change after more than a century of history that seeks to highlight the Hauts de France region, located in the north of the country, in the border area with Belgium, where a race that has not started in Paris since the mid-20th century predominantly takes place.

258.3 kilometers, a distance similar to the 2025 edition, and 30 cobblestone sections totaling 58.4 kilometers are the hallmarks of a race that introduces some changes after the first cobblestone section, Troivilles, which race director Thierry Gouvenou explained: “By slightly diverting east towards the village of Briastre, we reach a situation where the first four sectors follow each other quickly, almost without asphalt between them, creating an unmatched density of cobblestones.”

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A first chain of sectors that will culminate at number 26, after passing through the village of Briastre, which the race has traversed on few occasions and which takes place on an 800 m climb.

Nevertheless, the passage through the fearsome Arenberg forest, which will take place at kilometer 163 of the race, will likely remain decisive, repeating last year’s solution of guiding the peloton through a parallel street so that cyclists arrive at the section with less speed and thus avoid falls at the start of it.

Of course, the usual other 5-star sections will also be present, such as Mons en Pévèle and Carrefour de l’Arbre.

Along with the presentation of the route, the participating teams in the race were also announced. In addition to, obviously, the 18 World Tour teams and the three best Pro Teams from last year: Cofidis, Pinarello-Q36.5, and Tudor, the four wildcards granted by the organization have gone to Moderm Adventure Pro Cycling, Flanders-Baloise, TotalEnergies, and Uniber Rose Rockets.