A man in Belgium was facing charges on Monday after allegedly throwing a bottle of water at cyclistMathieu van der Poel during the closing stages of Sunday's Paris - Roubaix race, which he won for the third time in a row.
Footage of the incident in the Templeuve cobbled sector just over 30 kilometres from the finish line in Roubaix was caught on TV.
West Flanders public prosecutor's office issued a statement on Monday saying the suspect had been taken to a police station. The man's identity was not given.
Despite the blow to his face,van der Poel managed to continue the course and claim a third successive title at a race nicknamed the 'Hell of the North'.
Van der Poel, who won after completing the259.2km coursein five hours, 31 minutes and 27 seconds, called onworld cycling authoritiesto take action.
"It's unacceptable," said the 30-year-old Dutchman. "It was a full can of water, it weighed half a kilo and I was going at 40 kph. It was like getting hit by a stone. It really hurt."
Pogacar in second place
Three-time Tour de France winnerTadej Pogacar,who was competing in his first Paris - Roubaix race, was second and Mads Pedersen finished third.
"The victory means a lot to me," said van der Poel who broke clear after Pogacar crashed at a corner 40km from the finish line.
"When Tadej made his mistake I had to give it my all because there were still a lot of kilometres and a lot of competitors," he added.
"I fought all the way to the finish line. Tadej is an incredible champion. It was his first time in the race and I'm not surprised that he had an incredible race. I think it would have been very hard to lose him if he hadn't made that mistake. It's a bit of a shame but that's racing."
With his success,van der Poeljoins Octave Lapize and Francesco Moser as the only men in the 122-year history of the race to win three crowns on the trot.
Lapize pulled off his feats between 1909 and 1911 while Moser emulated the Frenchman between 1978 and 1980.
Women's race winner
PaulineFerrand-Prvot, who won gold for France in themountain bikingat the Paris2024 Olympics,claimed the women's race on Saturday.
The 33-year-old, who was competing for the first time since the inception of the women's race in 2021, came home in three hours, 40 minutes and one second.
Italy's Letizia Borghesi was nearly a minute behind in second andLorena Wiebes from the Netherlands was third.
"I've been ill for the last two days," said Ferrand-Prvot after the 148.5km trek between Denain and Roubaix.
"I didn't even know if I was going to make the start. In the end, I was right to come. Winning Roubaix ... I'm super happy. it's perhaps my greatest victory.
"It was my first time in Roubaix," she added. "But it might well be my last because it was so hard."
Originally published on RFI
