Paris-Roubaix Femmes 2023: 'A lot of times dreams stay dreams… it’s unreal' – Shock winner Alison Jackson

Published 08/04/2023 at 19:17 GMT

The tears rolled down Alison Jackson’s cheeks after she pulled off one of the biggest upsets in recent memory at Paris-Roubaix Femmes. At times, the Canadian was on a one-woman mission to stop the breakaway being swallowed up by a chase group packed with favourites – repeatedly attacking and pulling on the front before somehow finding the energy reserves to triumph in a six-way sprint.

'A lot of times dreams just stay dreams... it's unreal' - Jackson after stunning win

“When we did the pre-ride and we rode around this velodrome, I dreamed of winning. But a lot of times those dreams stay dreams. It’s unreal to make it happen in real life.”

Alison Jackson (EF Education–Tibco–SVB) let the emotion flow as she basked in a stunning victory at Paris-Roubaix Femmes, where she helped stave off a group of pre-race favourites to deliver a career-defining win.

Jackson, part of an 18-strong breakaway that was eventually whittled down to seven, was instrumental in keeping the chase group at bay in a thrilling finale – dropping a series of attacks and marshalling her rivals to ensure the lead never dropped below 10 seconds.

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So often the chief animator in the break fades in a sprint showdown, but Jackson mustered up one final burst to take a brilliant win in the Roubaix Velodrome ahead of Katia Ragusa (Liv Racing TeqFind) and Marthe Truyen (Fenix-Deceuninck).

“I wanted to be part of the action," said Jackson. "I wanted to be ahead of the race, I didn’t want to wait. Our team for this spring has just been waiting and it hasn’t been working.

“In that final the group was coming back to us and there was only four of us seven that actually wanted to ride. Either you don’t ride and you lose the race or you ride hard and you maybe have a chance.

“It’s a dream come true. To cross the finish line first of any bike race is a special type of fun. And this one tops that.”

Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx), defending champion Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek-Segafredo) and Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) were all part of an ominous chase group, but they failed to cooperate to slash the final few seconds and haul themselves into contention.

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Over on The Breakaway, Joanna Rowsell, Adam Blythe and Dani Christmas were quick to laud Jackson.

“She was consistently the rider that was trying to get people working. She was going on the attack. She was easily the most aggressive rider of the race,” said two-time Olympic champion Rowsell.

“I never thought she would actually win it though. I didn’t think they would stay away. You had all those big names behind but she believed in herself and got a win.”

'I never thought she would actually win!' - Breakaway react to stunning Jackson triumph

Earlier, Longo Borghini had wiped out Kopecky and a select group of favourites after slipping on a patch of muddy cobblestones, while Vos was already fighting back after an early mechanical.

The crash appeared to provide the boost the breakaway needed to stay away, with Blythe admitting he could not recall another Paris-Roubaix – men’s or women’s – that culminated in a mass sprint from the group that had been out in front all day.

“It’s mad. We’ve seen sprints in the past, not in the women’s race but in the men’s, where it comes down to a group,” said Blythe.

“In Roubaix you can always get an early break and a couple of riders will always get to the finish in the front 10 maybe. But for the break to win? That’s completely another story. And for it to be a sprint within that group as well, it’s almost unheard of.

“It just shows how well the women were working together today. They’ve gone in the breakaway for a reason – to try and get as far as they can in the race and hopefully get a good result.

“But I don’t think any of them until the last 3km were thinking ‘I’ve got a chance of a podium here’. They were probably thinking ‘I’ll wait, I’ll sit back, I’ll follow the wheels and if I get caught I might be able to sprint’.

“But the gap never closed and I can imagine it was like all Christmases coming at once. It’s just unbelievable.”

Highlights: Jackson surprise winner after Longo Borghini crash sparks chaos

Jackson is the third winner of Paris-Roubaix Femmes, ending Trek-Segafredo’s two-year streak after Lizzie Deignan won the inaugural edition in 2021 and Longo Borghini triumphed last year.

“Obviously she [Jackson] was incredibly motivated to stay away because they [EF Education–Tibco-SVB] didn’t have any options behind. So it was her or nothing,” added Christmas.

“Once she had committed so much to that break, she just needed it to stay away. We just saw her attacking time after time.”

Eurosport's moto rider Iris Slappendel was also full of praise for Jackson, revealing that it takes a certain mentality to triumph at Hell of the North.

“It was a dramatic race and a really amazing winner," Slappendel said. "Alison is such a special person in our sport. She’s always racing hard, she’s very important in teams. I was thinking in the final [moments] ‘you have to love this race to win it’. And I spoke to Alison this morning and she loves it. And she wins it!”

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