| Belgium 's Cycling Tradition in Full Swing
Cyrille Van Hauwaert (Bel) started 1908 by winning Milan-San Remo two weeks earlier. After finishing second in 1907 he came to Paris to confirm his early season fitness.
The weather in France the week before the race was nasty. The roads were a muddy mess. On race day the riders were met with a cold rain, some snow and sleet falling on the course. Disregarding the weather the riders set a brutal pace from the start line in Chatou. Through all the checkpoints the lead group was slowly dwindling.
Van Hauwaert closed and passed solo leader Frans Faber (Lux) in the closing kilometers. Entering the Velodrome Van Hauwaert collided with a park worker and crashed. He remounted quickly and crossed the finish line for the 1908 Paris-Roubaix victory.
| P-R April 19, 1908 |
| 271 Km, Chatou (west of Paris) to Roubaix (Rue Verte, Criox) |
1.
Cyrille VAN HAUWAERT (Bel)10hr34’25” |
| 2.
Georges Lorgeou (Fra)
+3'35" |
| 3.
Francois Faber (Lux)
+5'05" |
| Starters: 90 |
| Finishers: 27 |
| Average Speed: 25.630 km/h |
P-R 1907
P-R 1909
Return to the Timeline ToC
Return to the Race Snippets ToC |
13th Paris-Roubaix 1908 (France) 
