The Hell of the North. The Queen of the Classics. First held in 1896, Paris-Roubaix is without question the hardest, most brutal one-day road race in the world. Starting from Compiègne just north of Paris and heading to Roubaix in northern France, the route tackles a number of cobblestone sectors in the latter half of its roughly 280km distance. The pavé sectors make or break many a riders' race, most often the latter.
