Paris-Roubaix organisers confirmed they will heed a request from the riders to add turns to the road at the entrance of the Forest of Arenberg sector in order to slow the speed of the peloton before the five-star section of cobbles, but the riders might regret the request.
"For safety reasons and following a request from the C.P.A. (Cyclistes Professionnels Associés) association, the Paris-Roubaix organisation is modifying the approach to the Trouée d'Arenberg," the race organisers Amaury Sport Organisation announced on Wednesday.
"The route will take a chicane just before the entrance to the sector in order to slow the speed at which the riders enter the sector and limit the risk of crashes on the cobbles."
The peloton normally hurtles into this five-star sector of cobbles at 60 kilometres per hour, with riders sprinting down the fast and straight approach road to the cobbled sector.
The ASO confirmed to Cyclingnews that what they refer to as a 'chicane' is actually a 180-degree turn around a traffic island just before the entrance to the forest.
RAI Sport journalist Stefano Rizzato posted a video to Twitter.com showing the new approach that has been confirmed by the ASO.
Click below to unfurl the video.
Ecco la chicane introdotta all’ingresso della foresta di #Arenberg, appena ufficializzata per la #ParisRoubaix @RaiSport pic.twitter.com/9cJ4p2OmxaApril 3, 2024
Defending champion Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) responded to the video with a single comment: "Is this a joke?".
CPA President Adam Hansen responded to the announcement on Twitter.com, stating, "Riders reached, and we acted on their behalf. Now, with a slower entrance to Arenberg, riders won't hit it with speed and momentum. It's going to make this sector even harder than before."
The recent crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen, involving Wout Van Aert and many others have highlighted the dangers of high-speed crashes.
The Forest of Arenberg, also known as the Trouée d'Arenberg (Arenberg trench), is the roughest and most treacherous stretch of cobbles in Paris-Roubaix. It is 2.3km long and often the site of crashes because riders come into the Arenberg forest with so much speed that any touch of the brakes on the slick pavé often leads to a fall. Kasper Asgreen and other riders were involved in a crash in the Forest of Arenberg in the 2023 Paris-Roubaix.
According to L'Equipe, the Cyclistes Professionnels Associés (CPA) riders association has asked race director Thierry Gouvenou to find a way to slow the peloton before entering the Forest of Arenberg.
"I've raced here twelve times, and twelve times I've arrived in front of the trouée d'Arenberg wondering how I was going to make it out," Gouvenou said, highlighting the dangers of this sector.
Gouvenou has some ideas on how to reduce the pace by adding a few turns or chicanes before the Porte du Hainaut that marks the entrance to the Arenberg forest.
"The idea is to add some turns to slow down the peloton and stretch it out, a bit like the chicane system on automobile circuits," Gouvenou said on Tuesday during the official recon of the race route by race organiser ASO.
"Currently, they hit the Forest of Arenberg at about 60 km/h. If we could slow down to 30-35 km/h, it would be less risky. And that would highlight the difficulty of the Trouée too because the riders would arrive without momentum."
Any change will have to be approved by the local authorities, however, because any extra turns or chicanes could also result in crashes before the pavé and local authorities are responsible for road design and ultimately sign-off race permits.
"I wrote to the riders, warning them that there would be greater braking before the Trouée," Gouvenou explained.
"They told me that they preferred to brake hard and risk falling on the tarmac rather than entering the Trouée at 60 km/h."
Speeds of Paris-Roubaix have risen sharply in recent years with the advance of aerodynamic equipment with the average speed record broken three times in the past six editions. The 2023 race ran at 46.84kph. more than a kilometre per hour quicker than the previous year's record.
Fast race are expected in both the women's and men's races on Saturday and Sunday with possible tail winds and dry and warm conditions.
"The riders are a little on edge and are asking us for a little more security to enter the trouée, that doesn't seem illogical to us," Gouvenou said.
"But it may be necessary to think in the longer term, in particular about the bikes and equipment, which are the reasons for certain falls."
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