Cobblestone thieves strike Paris–Roubaix route as Thierry Gouvenou pleads: "Leave those cobblestones alone. This race is already brutal enough."

This Sunday, the cycling world will witness another recital of endurance and brutality with the much-anticipated Paris-Roubaix, affectionately known as “The Hell of the North”.

The race is defined by its unforgiving cobbled sectors, where only the strongest survive and the very best prevail. Once again, all eyes will be on a potential clash of titans between Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogacar. But for that spectacle to unfold as expected, one crucial condition must be met, the cobbled sectors must actually… have cobblestones.

Behind the scenes, Thierry Gouvenou is the man responsible for preparing the legendary course. However, he has been dealing with an increasingly serious issue. “Thieves,” he told De Telegraaf. “We are dealing with this more and more. In this section, the Forest of Wallers, and also in the Carrefour de l’Arbre sector, we have a lot of extra work."

“These are mythical sectors and people steal cobblestones to take them home as souvenirs. What they don’t realise is that by doing so, they create large and deep holes in the road. It is incomprehensible that they don’t think about the consequences this can have for the race. That will inevitably cause crashes in both the women’s and men’s races on Sunday,” he continued.

“What these people do can be extremely dangerous. Just imagine what happens if riders hit one of those holes… They go through this sector at speeds of 50 kilometres per hour."

While theft has become a growing concern, the usual sight in these sectors is far more unusual, goats. Yes, goats, and they play a surprisingly important role. “Those goats are there for a reason. Excess grass can also be a risk factor during the race. We let the animals graze there so that this sector is in impeccable condition on Sunday, something we haven’t seen in years,” said the route director.

Cobblestone thieves tend to operate under the cover of darkness, but they are not the only visitors roaming the sectors at night. Wild boars are also part of the landscape.

“Those animals feel at home in the Forest. They bring a lot of soil and leaves onto the sectors. We try to clean it as best as possible. But all of that pales in comparison to the much bigger concern in recent years, people digging up cobblestones and taking them away.”

To counter the problem, Gouvenou relies on a dedicated team working tirelessly to inspect, protect and repair the course.

“We regularly repeat our checks in the lead-up to the race. At the end of the week, we go over everything once again. Apart from the fact that deep holes are very dangerous, they can also have a major impact on how the race unfolds."

Everything must be ready in time for both the women’s and men’s races, and the route director is eager for the weekend to arrive.

“Naturally, we are all looking forward to a great battle between Tadej Pogacar and Mathieu van der Poel. It would be deeply sad if one of these giants were to crash because someone thought a Paris-Roubaix cobblestone would look nice on their fireplace.”

In a final appeal, the Frenchman leaves a message for those responsible. “We want to see that beautiful battle, so people: ‘leave those cobblestones alone’. This race is already brutal enough.”