"It wasn't really fun there" - Mathieu van der Poel's mother details emotions behind the scenes

Mathieu van der Poel has taken a glorious win at Paris-Roubaix yesterday, but the emotions throughout the race swing wildly. Not only for the riders but for their staff and family too. The Dutchman's parents and girlfriend were in Roubaix last afternoon and his mother describes the emotions she felt throughout and after the race.

“When he entered the velodrome alone, and I knew he would win, it made me emotional. I'm not going to say that winning Paris-Roubaix was impossible for Mathieu, but it was a dream of his," van der Poel's mother Corinne Poulidor told Telegraaf. Having won Milano-Sanremo and the Tour of Flanders in the past, this has become his third different monument win, and second of the season in great style.

Alpecin-Deceuninck had a stupendous performance that saw them having the biggest amount of riders in front once the race split, and then strategically racing to a one-two. The van der Poel family, which is greatly connected with the Belgian team, see years of work both from them and the team to build a strong classics block give it's fruits, on their first year as a World Tour squad.

“It wasn't really fun there. To be honest, I didn't even see Mathieu pass. I was way too nervous. To be honest, I didn't dare look. It's all just too stressful for me," Corinne added. "This Easter Monday I will take another look at the course at home. Then I can do that in peace.”