Tadej Pogačar's second attempt at winning Paris-Roubaix ended in another second place as the World Champion lost by metres rather than minutes on the Roubaix velodrome.
He led the race with Wout van Aert after attacking on the Auchy-lez-Orchies cobbled sector with 54km to go, and the pair remained alone out front all the way to the finish.
Pogačar launched several attacks along the way in a bid to drop superior sprinter Van Aert, but it wasn't to be for the Slovenian.
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He led out the closing spring in Roubaix, but Van Aert's finishing speed told, the Belgian coming around the outside of the final bend to win the Queen of the Classics, his second Monument victory.
Speaking to assembled reporters after the finish, Pogačar said that it was "mission impossible" to drop Van Aert today.
"I think most of the people today had problems with the punctures. I had three punctures today and three bike changes, so it was not ideal," he said.
"I had a super strong team to bring me back just before Arenberg, but then I was already a little bit cooked. When I was with Wout, there was not much freshness in the legs to really drop him on the cobbles.
"I saw quite fast that it would be mission impossible. I gave my best in the sprint, but he won Champs-Elysées in the end, so it's hard to beat him."
Pogačar had a few near misses on the cobbles as he and Van Aert held off a chase group including three-time winner Mathieu van der Poel on the run to Roubaix.
He managed to stay upright each time, setting up a two-man sprint for glory. Come the final metres, however, Pogačar said he had little chance in the sprint.
"When [Wout] first time attacked, I still believed that I could counter-attack him, but he rode super smart afterwards, and we shared the work quite well," he said.
"But maybe on the cobbles after his attack – Carrefour is really hard, but the wind is also in the face, and I knew from there that it was going to be 99% impossible.
"I still had a hope in the sprint, but when I started the sprint, my legs were like spaghetti."
Pogačar, who has won four of cycling's five Monuments, will continue in his quest to win the fifth in Northern France.
"I cannot say no," he replied when he was asked about a return in 2027.
"It's still my second time here, so let's give it time and we'll see."
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