Mikel Landa (Movistar) suffered a crash after hitting a hole while drinking from his bidon (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Simon Clarke (EF-Drapac) (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) added to his green jersey tally (Image credit: Getty Images)
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A Sunweb mechanic ready for wheel changes (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Chris Froome (Team Sky) (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Romain Bardet faced a lengthy chase with his teammate (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Chris Froome (Team Sky) had one crash but came away unharmed in the Roubaix stage (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) in the maillot jaune in the Roubaix stage of the Tour de France (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo) showed his old form on the cobbles (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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The iconic windmill reminds the Tour de France of Paris-Roubaix (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Michal Kwiatkowski (Team Sky) hit the deck (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Michal Kwiatkowski (Team Sky - right) got a cobbled turn wrong (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Chad Haga (Team Sunweb) leads the breakaway (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Damiano Caruso (BMC) leads the peloton over the pavé (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Rigoberto Uran looks for the EF-Drapac team car after a crash (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Tom Dumoulin (Sunweb) looked strong on the cobbles (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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The French flags fly over the Tour de France as riders enter secteur 13 (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Laurens ten Dam (Sunweb) was tangled in a crash with Dylan Groenewegen (LottoNl-Jubmbo) (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Flanders flags fly over the Tour de France's Roubaix stage (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Romain Bardet and teammate Mathias Frank after a crash (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) caught up in a crash with Tim Declercq (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) caught up in a crash with Tim Declercq (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) and John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo), two former Paris-Roubaix winners, had the edge on stage 9 (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Tejay van Garderen had a crash in a dusty turn (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Stage 9 of the Tour de France (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Dry, dusty conditions made the cobbles dangerous (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Yves Lampaert, Greg Van Avermaet and John Degenkolb got away on the Camphin-en-Pevele secteur (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Michal Kwiatkowsi (Team Sky) gets up after a crash (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Stage 9 of the Tour de France (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale) with much of Northern France on his face (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Michael Valgren (Astana) torn up in a crash (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Richie Porte (BMC) crashed early in stage 9 and broke his collarbone (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Richie Porte (BMC) crashed early in stage 9 and broke his collarbone (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
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Jens Keukeleire (Lotto Soudal) sits in the road with Richie Porte (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Jens Keukeleire (Lotto Soudal) crashed early on stage 9 (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
In the spring, the ancient cobblestone roads in the farmlands of northern France are unearthed from their winter cover, berms of mud heaved to each side of the verge to ready the famed pavé for the arrival of the riders of Paris-Roubaix.
From time to time, they reappear in July – this time baked from the summer sun, the mud turned to dust, the plowed-under fields now verdant with life – as a challenge for the contenders in the Tour de France.
The gladiators of the spring Classics rose to the ocassion, with John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo) reprising his 2015 role as hoister of the cobblestone trophy, vanquishing the 2017 Roubaix champion Greg Van Avermaet who – resplendent in the maillot jaune as race leader – held back his disappointment. The German's storybook comeback was apt as not only his first Tour stage win, but his first major victory since his horror crash in 2016.
The cobbles, turned slick by silt as fine as baby powder, claimed a few victims – most notably Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale), Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing), and even defending Tour champion Chris Froome (Team Sky) – but the worst crashes happened as they usually do: at a moment of inattention or due to some aggressive fighting for position.
Richie Porte (BMC Racing) was the first to abandon, suffering a broken collarbone in a tangle with Jens Keukeleire (Lotto Soudal) and Michael Valgren (Astana). Mikel Landa (Movistar) hit a drain when drinking from his bidet on the most innocuous of roads, and was forced to chase for the better part of 20km.
All in all, it was a hectic, painful, day before the first rest day, but in the end not much changed for the overall classification. Van Avermaet extended his lead over Geraint Thomas (Team Sky) to 43 seconds, while Rigoberto Uran (EF Education First-Drapac) was the biggest loser of the day, giving up 1:55 after being unable to rejoin following a crash.
Click or swipe through the gallery to view the chaos of the cobbles.
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