It’s no secret that Jasper Philipsen dreams of winning Paris-Roubaix, but his love for the 'Hell of the North' runs deep. That becomes clear when the race comes up in an interview with Het Nieuwsblad. "It’s a race I truly live for," he says.
"It’s a race I have a lot of passion for, and I even get emotional thinking about it. It’s races like Paris-Roubaix that got me into cycling in the first place. They align with my DNA and that of the team, and they resonate in Belgium. I like that I can focus on that. Maybe in a few years that will shift and I’ll focus more on sprints because that’s intrinsically what I do best. But nothing ventured, nothing gained."
In recent years, Philipsen has shown that the cobbled classic is within his reach. In fact, in 2023 and 2024, he finished second behind his unbeatable teammate Mathieu van der Poel. Does the speedy Belgian ever visualize crossing the finish line first at the Roubaix Velodrome?
"Visualizing is a strong word, but when you adopt your lifestyle and focus to build your form towards spring, you need something that helps you with that. To put on your training shorts every morning, you need a certain perspective, otherwise it gets tough. That’s what I do it for in races like those."
Culture
"It also requires a certain level of alertness from the whole team. We have a culture of building up to those races. Our coaches and team management master the art of designing a plan for those kinds of races, and we have a strong group for it. I think Mathieu and I motivate each other intensely in both directions."
