The sight of Mathieu van der Poel applauding from the centre of the velodrome as Jasper Philipsen outsprinted his rivals for a repeat second place behind his Dutch teammate was one of the most memorable of the 2024 edition of Paris-Roubaix. And while Van der Poel is once again a surefire key contender for next Sunday, Philipsen himself is hoping for a top result.
Following his bad crash in Nokere Koerse earlier this spring, just a few days after his stunning triumph at Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne and third place in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Philipsen recently seemed to be hitting top form again this week with a second place in Scheldeprijs behind Tim Merlier.
