John Degenkolb to have sector named in his honour in Paris-Roubaix
Jan 24 2020 11:10 pm CET
Photo of John Degenkolb (c) Lotto Soudal
John Degenkolb (Lotto-Soudal) is set to have a sector with his name in Paris-Roubaix.
French newspaper La Voix Du Nord reported that the cobbled sector between Hornaing and Wandignies-Hamage will be named after the winner of the 2015 edition of the race. This honour will be granted to the rider not only because of his victory in Paris-Roubaix but also for his work at saving the junior version of the competition last year.
"We have been looking for a while to name this sector in honour of the champion (Degenkolb) who is still active and can come to meet us," said Vincent Talmasse, president of the Velo Club Hornaing. "He won the race in 2015, he took the victory at the stage of the 2018 Tour de France that took place in parts of the Paris-Roubaix course, and he saved the junior's race by launching a crowdfunding campaign that quickly gathered the necessary funds."
Talmasse contacted Degenkolb through messenger to tell him the news. "He first asked me if it was a joke," he said. "Then he quickly directed me to his agent, because of the things that he has to do with his new team. We will still have to found a date in which he and the representatives of Lotto Soudal can come."
In 2018, a sector in Chemin Saint-Quentin was named after the Belgian rider Michael Goolaerts, who died in that year's edition of the race due to a heart attack.
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