Congratulations to Taylor Phinney for defending his Paris-Roubaix Espoirs title! The victory marked the second time in two-years the American has won the race across the world’s most unforgiving cobbles. The 19-year-old from Boulder, Colorado continued his winning streak after winning four stages and the general classification last week at the Olympias Tour.
Teammate Ben King (AUS) lead the peleton in an early breakaway with seven other riders that gained up to three minutes at one point. Thee impressive performance allowed for the Australian-native to drive a hard tempo, widdling down the leader group to teammate Phinney, Jens Debusschere (PWS-Eijssen Cycling Team) and Fabien Taillefer (Team Véranda Rideau Sarthe).
After a valiant effort to protect the team leader and race favorite, King eventually dropped setting up for Phinney to easily claim the sprint finish. King and teammate Jesse Sergent both placed in the Top 20 with 6th and 13th place finishes in a team effort that secured Phinney’s second consecutive U23 Paris-Roubaix title.