German champion Franzi Koch outwitted a Visma-Lease a Bike pair to win Sunday’s Paris-Roubaix Femmes, the Hell of the North. Koch beat Marianne Vos in a two-up sprint after last year’s victor Pauline Ferrand-Prévot led them into the famous Roubaix Velodrome.
Preliminaries
Winning the 2025 Paris-Roubaix was Ferrand-Prévot’s first big result in a remarkable comeback season.
The 2023 champ, Alison Jackson, fifth last year, headed up the Canadian contingent. Maggie Coles-Lyster was back, along with EF Education-Oatly’s Alex Volstad and Jenaya Francis racing her first Hell of the North.
The Course
The women’s race included 20 sectors of pavé in 142.9 km, the first arriving at the 29.3-km mark. Although the five-star Trouée d’Arenberg wasn’t included, two other five-stars, 3-km Mons-en-Pévèle (kilometre 94.5) and 2.1-km Carrefour de l’Arbre (kilometre 126), would challenge the field. The race would reach its climax in the famous Roubaix Velodrome.
In the earlier stages, there was a lone breakaway rider soloing over the first sectors. However, by Sector 12, **** Auchy-lez-Orchies à Bersée, she was caught and the peloton was reduced to 50 riders, Elisa Balasmo not included.
***** Mons-en-Pévèle
There was no attacks on the first five-star sector, but there was a further streamlining of the bunch.
However, Ferrand-Prévot attacked on the pavement, teammate Vos, Kata Blanka Vas and Koch coming along. Lucinda Brand tried to sew up the tear but the quartet’s gap increased over the next four sectors. On *** Bourghelles à Wannehain Koch accelerated and took Vos with her. Ferrand-Prévot bridged over while Vas sat up and waited for the nearest chase.
Koch’s surges on **** Camphin-en-Pévèle and ***** Carrefour de l’Arbre put Ferrand-Prévot in difficulty.
Koch was outnumbered, but was she outgunned? With 4 km to go the German dropped the French rider, but Ferrand-Prévot made it back with 1.8 km remaining and then led into the velodrome. Koch went high. Vos and Koch sprinted shoulder to shoulder, with the German on the inside holding off the legend.
Paris-Roubaix Femmes
1) Franziska Koch (Germany/FDJ United-Suez) 3:30:16
2) Marianne Vos (The Nethelands/Visma-Lease a Bike) s.t.
3) Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (France/Visma-Lease a Bike) +0:06