The second edition of the Paris-Roubaix Femmes avec Zwift looked very different from the first iteration in October of 2021. Not only was the former champion Lizzie Deignan not in attendance, but the weather was completely different from last year's slippery mudfest. The warm, sunny day gave a new meaning to “Hell of the North,” the race’s longtime nickname. Racing was predictably heated, with no mud and unseasonably clean cobbles lending themselves to speed over technique, but crashes and tire punctures still marred the race. And in the end, it was Trek-Segafredo’s Elisa Longo Borghini who took the win after launching a solo attack, holding it for over 30 kilometers.

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2022 Paris-Roubaix (Men's) - Results

Pre-Race Drama

Before the race even started, two of the top riders were out of contention for the win: Deignan is expecting her second child and wasn’t on the start line, and pre-race favorite Marianne Vos tested positive for COVID just ahead of the race.

The Big Moves

American in the front: Coverage began right before the first cobbled section with roughly 85 kilometers to go. A small group, including young American Katie Clouse, had a solid 1:30 lead on the peloton. However, the gap quickly dropped, and the racers were pulled back.

Bad luck for Trek-Segafredo: Hitting another cobble section, there was a crash for Trek-Segafredo’s Chloe Hosking, right as her teammate Ellen van Dijk suffered a front flat. Luckily, she was able to get a fast wheel change, but it took another 20 kilometers before she would make her way back into the peloton. The racing heated up in the cobbled sections, with cyclocross riders like Christine Majerus covering ground smoothly. With 50 kilometers of racing left, Lotte Kopecky, Marta Bastianelli, and Lucinda Brand created a small gap, but only maintained it for several kilometers.

Sticky bottles: Reigning World Champion Elisa Balsamo from Trek-Segafredo was disqualified for holding a bottle held by a soigneur in the team car for too long.

That attack: Balsamo’s teammate Elisa Longo Borghini took over the lead, quickly building a 15-second gap with just over 30 kilometers to go. Longo Borghini maintained her solo lead, growing her gap to over 22 seconds as the peloton and smaller chase groups began to come back together. Teams like SD Worx, Movistar, and Jumbo Visma, who still had multiple riders in the peloton, began to launch attacks to close the gap. The rutted cobbles with 18.5 kilometers to go scattered riders across the course, shattering the peloton, as even Longo Borghini skidded solo into a corner and almost crashed.

The Finish

With 16 kilometers to go, a group of six formed to chase Longo Borghini, who maintained her 23-second gap. SD Worx’s Kopecky led the chase group, which included FDJ’s Marta Cavalli, who won the Amstel Gold race last weekend, as well as two Trek-Segafredo riders, including Brand. Trek-Segafredo’s riders allowed Longo Borghini’s advantage to grow up to 42 seconds.

Longo Borghini came in with plenty of time to celebrate her victory in the famous Roubaix velodrome—just as her teammate Lizzie Deignan had done in 2021. Behind her, a sprint between six riders in the velodrome determined the rest of the peloton, with Kopecky in second and Brand in third.

What the winner had to say: “It’s an unbelievable feeling, to be fair, it’s been a very tough spring for me. I had sinusitis for a month and I could not really perform the way I wanted. I knew I was worth more than what I was performing.

“It was a little bit frustrating, so it was a bit of a hard time. I need to thank, first of all, my family, my boyfriend, my mom, my dad, my nieces, who are always keeping my morale up.

“Secondly, I want to thank Trek-Segafredo because they had faith in me even if I didn’t perform the way that I was supposed to. They brought me to this race and I didn’t think I was ready, I didn’t think that I wanted to do it. They kept saying, ‘we know you are ready and capable of doing this.’ I have to say that they were right,” said Longo Borghini.

2nd paris roubaix 2022 women's elite
Tim de Waele//Getty Images

2022 Paris-Roubaix Femmes Top 10

  1. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) Trek-Segafredo Women
  2. Lotte Kopecky (Bel) SD Worx
  3. Lucinda Brand (Ned) Trek-Segafredo Women
  4. Elise Chabbey (Swi) Canyon-Sram Racing
  5. Marta Cavalli (Ita) FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope
  6. Floortje Mackaij (Ned) Team DSM Women
  7. Ellen van Dijk (Ned) Trek-Segafredo Women
  8. Chantal van den Broek-Blaak (Ned) SD Worx
  9. Pfeiffer Georgi (GBr) Team DSM Women
  10. Sandra Alonso Dominguez (Spa) Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling Team
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Molly Hurford

Molly writes about cycling, nutrition and training, with an emphasis on women in sport. Her new middle-grade series, Shred Girls, debuts with Rodale Kids/Random House in 2019 with "Lindsay's Joyride." Her other books include "Mud, Snow and Cyclocross," "Saddle, Sore" and "Fuel Your Ride." Her work has been published in magazines like Bicycling, Outside and Nylon. She co-hosts The Consummate Athlete Podcast.