Podium History of Paris-Roubaix | 2007 edition | 2009 edition | Complete results | Photos

Les Woodland's book Cycling's World Championships: The Inside Story is available as an audiobook here. For the print and Kindle eBook versions, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

The race: The 2008 Paris-Roubaix was 259.5 kilometers long and raced at an average speed of 43.406 km/hr

There were 198 starters and 113 classified finishers.

Though rain was forecast for race day, the riders were greeted with almost clear skies, though the roads were wet from the previous night’s rain.

It was with 53 kilometers to go on the Auchy-lez Orchies cobbled sector that Johan van Summeren made the attack that put a group of eight riders ahead of the field.

At sector seven, Templeuve-Moulin-de-Vertain with 33 kilometers left to race, Fabian Cancellara attacked the lead group taking Alessandro Ballan and Tom Boonen with him.

The trio worked well together, though Cancellara tried to get away at least once. Ballan led the lead trio onto the Roubaix velodrome where Tom Boon showed was clearly the strongest man of the three. He easily beat his exhausted fellow escapees to win Paris-Roubaix for a second time.

Complete Results:

1. Tom Boonen (Quick Step) 5hr 58min 42sec

2. Fabian Cancellara (CSC) s.t.
3. Alessandro Ballan (Lampre) s.t.
4. Martijn Maaskrant (Slipstream) @ 3min 39sec
5. Stuart O'Grady (CSC) @ 3min 57sec
6. Leif Hoste (Silence-Lotto) s.t.
7. Stijn Devolder (Quick Step) @ 3min 59sec
8. Johan Van Summeren (Silence-Lotto) @ 4min 35sec
9. George Hincapie (High Road) @ 5min 12sec
10. Fabian Baldato (Lampre) s.t.
11. Frederic Guesdon (FDJ) s.t.
12. Juan Antonio Flecha (Rabobank) s.t.
13. Manuel Quinziato (Liquigas) s.t.
14. Win De Vocht (Silence-Lotto) s.t.
15. Staf Scheirlinckx (Cofidis) s.t.
16. Marcus Ljungqvist (CSC) s.t.
17. Bernhard Eisel (High Road) @ 5min 20sec
18. Sven Krauss (Gerolsteiner) @ 7min 18sec
19. Steven De Jongh (Quick Step) s.t.
20. Matti Breschel (CSC) s.t.
21. Nick Nuyens (Cofidis) s.t.
22. Murilo Fischer (Liquigas) s.t.
23. Roger Hammond (High Road) s.t.
24. Wouter Weylandts (Quick Step) s.t.
25. Christophe Mengin (FDJ) s.t.
26. Ralf Grabsch (Milram) @ 7min 20sec
27. Greg Van Avermaet (Silence-lotto) s.t.
28. Steffen Wesemann (Collstrop) @ 7min 27sec
29. Tom Veelers (Skil-Shimano) @ 7min 34sec
30. Markus Eichler (Milram) @ 7min 39sec
31. Baden Cooke (Barloworld) 11min 8sec
32. Martin Elmiger (Ag2r) @ 11min 26sec
33. Allan Johansen (CSC) s.t.
34. Servais Knaven (High Road) @ 11min 34sec
35. Aurélien Clerc (Bouygues Telecom) @ 11min 44sec
36. Jimmy Casper (Agritubel) s.t.
37. Kurt-Asle Arvesen (CSC) s.t.
38. Jimmy Engoulvent (Credit Agricole) s.t.
39. Niko Eeckhout (Topsport Vlaanderen) @ 11min 46sec
40. Stijn Vandenbergh (Ag2r) s.t.
41. David Boucher (Landbouwkrediet) s.t.
42. Kevin Neirynck (Landbouwkrediet) s.t.
43. Sébastien Hinault (Credit Agricole) @ 11min 55sec
44. Matthé Pronk (Collstrop) @ 12min 11sec
45. Jan Kuyckx (Landbouwkrediet) @ 13min 56sec
46. Paolo Fornaciari (Lampre) s.t.
47. Filip Meirhaeghe (Landbouwkrediet) @ 15min 42sec
48. Kurt Hovelynck (Topsport Vlaanderen) s.t.
49. Filippo Pozzato (Liquigas) s.t.
50. Laszlo Bodrogi (Credit Agricole) s.t.
51. Matteo Tosatto (Quick Step) s.t.
52. Alexandre Pichot (Bouygues Telecom) s.t.
53. Frederik Willems (Liquigas) s.t.
54. Pedro Horillo (Rabobank) @ 16min 48sec
55. José Joaquin Rojas (Caisse d'Epargne) s.t.
56. Robert Wagner (Skil-Shimano) s.t.
57. Tyler Farrar (Slipstream) s.t.
58. Heinrich Haussler (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
59. Kristof Goddaert (Topsport Vlaanderen0 s.t.
60. Vicente Garcia Acosta (Caisse d'Epargne) s.t.
61. Steven Caethoven (Agritubel) s.t.
62. Christian Knees (Milram) s.t.
63. Erki Putsep (Bouygues Telecom) s.t.
64. Luciano Pagliarini (Saunier Duval) s.t.
65. Peter Wrolich (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
66. Gabriel Rasch (Credit Agricole) s.t.
67. Christopher Sutton (Slipstream) s.t.
68. Nicolas Portal (Caisse d'Epargne) s.t.
69. Emanol Erviti (Caisse d'Epargne) s.t.
70. Wilfried Cretskens (Quick Step) s.t.
71. Markel Irizar (Euskaltel) s.t.
72. Martin Muller (Milram) s.t.
73. Frank Hoj (Cofidis) s.t.
74. Mathieu Drujon (Caissed'Epargne) s.t.
75. Sebastian Lang (Gerolsteiner) s.t.
76. Aleksandr Kuschynski (Liquigas) s.t.
77. Franck Rénier (Bouygues Telecom) s.t.
78. Cédric Coutouly (Agritubel) s.t.
79. Koen Barbe (Topsport Vlaanderen) s.t.
80. Paolo Longo Borghini (Barloworld) @ 16min55sec
81. Pieter Vanspeybrouck (Topsport Vlaanderen) s.t.
82. Geoffroy Lequatre (Agritubel) s.t.
83. Mathieu Ladagnous (FDJ) @ 16min 57sec
84. Massimiliano Mori (Lampre) s.t.
85. Danilo Napolitano (Lampre) s.t.
86. Mickael Delage (FDJ) s.t.
87. Yoann Offedo (FDJ) s.t.
88. Ian Stannard (Landbouwkrediet) s.t.
89. Fabio Sabatini (Milram) s.t.
90. Marco Marcato (Collstrop) s.t.
91. Juan José Oroz (Euskaltel) s.t.
92. Mathieu Heijboer (Cofidis) s.t.
93. Wim Vansenvenant (Silence-Lotto) s.t.
94. Marco Bandiera (Lampre) s.t.
95. Floris Goesinnen (Skil-shimano) s.t.
96. Yannick Talabardon (Credit Agricole) s.t.
97. Hervé Duclos-Lassalle (Cofidis) @ 17min 3sec
98. Rick Flens (Rabobank) s.t.
99. Jan Boven (Rabobank) s.t.
100. Renaud Dion (Ag2r) s.t.
101. Raul Alarcon (Saunier Duval) @ 17min 7sec
102. Joost Posthuma (Rabobank) s.t.
103. Niki Terpstra (Milram s.t.
104. Tom Leezer (Rabobank) s.t.
105. Sébastien Minard (Cofidis) s.t.
106. Arnaud Gérard (FDJ) s.t.
107. Vincent Jerome (Bouygues Telecom) s.t.
108. Roy Sentjens (Silence-Lotto) s.t.
109. Mikhail Ignatiev (Tinkoff) @ 18min 53sec
110. Emilien Benoit Bergès (Agritubel) @ 19min 21sec
111. Mikel Gaztanaga Echeverria (Agritubel) s.t.
112. Christophe Laurent (Slipstream) s.t.
113. Mathew Hayman (Rabobank) @ 29min 35sec

---

Photos by Sirotti

Alessandro Ballan leads during the first lap on the Roubaix velodrome.

Boonen wins in front of Cancellara and Ballan

Another shot of the finish

Through the Arenberg Forest

More Arenberg Forest. Johan van Summeren leads Tom Boonen.

More suffering in the Arenberg Forest

Panorama of cobbled sector

 

CSC doing their share. I think the second rider is Stuart O'Grady and the fourth is Fabian Cancellara.

Boonen leads Cancellara

Belgian champion Stijn Devolder

Tom Boonen earns another cobblestone