Wout van Aert finally secured the victory that has evaded him for nearly a decade by winning the 2026 Paris-Roubaix ahead of Tadej Pogačar – and, in doing so, set a new record for the fastest edition of the race in history (48.91kph).
Van Aert outsprinted Pogačar in the Roubaix velodrome to end Pogačar's quest to win all five of cycling’s Monuments in a single season. Pogačar arrived at Paris-Roubaix having already won Milan-San Remo in March and last weekend’s Tour of Flanders.
Belgian one-day star Van Aert has twice finished on the podium at Paris-Roubaix – finishing second in 2022 and third in 2023.
This time around, however, it was the 31-year-old on the top step of the podium, riding the 258.3km course at a remarkable average speed of 48.91kph (30.39mph).
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That’s more than one kilometre per hour faster than the previous record of 47.80kph (29.70mph) set by Mathieu van der Poel in 2024.
The rapid advancement of aerodynamic know-how and the all-round improvement in bike tech, alongside the latest sports science, has contributed to modern-day cyclists riding fastest than ever, with van Aert also assisted by a tailwind through much of this year’s race.
- See all of BikeRadar's Paris-Roubaix 2026 coverage
10 fastest editions of Paris-Roubaix
- Wout van Aert – 48.91kph (30.39mph) – 2026
- Mathieu van der Poel – 47.80kph (29.70 mph) – 2024
- Mathieu van der Poel – 46.92kph (29.16 mph) – 2025
- Mathieu van der Poel – 46.84kph (29.11 mph) – 2023
- Dylan van Baarle – 45.79kph (28.45 mph) – 2022
- Greg Van Avermaet – 45.20kph (28.09 mph) – 2017
- Peter Post (NED) – 45.13kph (28.04 mph) – 1964
- Fabian Cancellara (SUI) – 44.19kph (27.46 mph) – 2013
- Rik Van Steenbergen (BEL) – 43.99kph (27.33 mph) – 1948
- Mathew Hayman (AUS) – 43.91kph (27.28 mph) – 2016
