The Queen

2012 Paris-Roubaix

Come Sunday the cobbles of Northern France look set to be covered in rain and mud. Soon after, they'll be covered in bidons, gel wrappers, fallen riders and bikes. One rider will take home a cobble, adding their name to that illustrious list of those who have won before him. Soon after collecting the cobble atop the podium the showers will beckon. Filled with muddy broken cyclists already with their mind focused on returning next year the victor, only one cyclist will enjoy a shower of victory.

Last year the Belgian Johan Vansummeren won after riding for several km's on a flat rear tyre. If he is successful in defending his title he'll surely not want to repeat the feat. However a win at Paris-Roubaix is win regardless of how it is achieved. A win on a flat tyre only adds to the magic of the monument. It will be loss not having the Swiss national champion Cancellara riding in the race following his crash at De Ronde. Regardless of who is racing, Paris-Roubaix will always be a special race but there are cyclists who light up the race every year. Vansummeren was a surprise winner last year on the Garmin team but his win showed that the race is never a foregone conclusion. Boonen is the outright favourite, and there is good reason for that. De Ronde reminded those in the know that a split second can change not only a race but a season. Its only early in the season, with no Grand Tours so far, but seasons for some are already reaching a crisis point. Who ends up smiling a muddy smile is anyone's guess, and that is the excitement of racing. It is race that is on edge for almost all of its 260km+ distance and that is even without the cobbles. Crashes are inevitable but hopefully will not be a deciding factor in the outcome of the victor.

There will be an article in the coming days of a longer length commenting upon the race throughout its history and some of the memorable moments that they cycling Gods have blessed us with.