The timeless inner sanctum: Inside the Paris-Roubaix showers

There are some moments that will stay with you forever. On any other day, it might have been the thunderous cacophony of noise that bellowed out from the Trouée d'Arenberg or the surreal sight of watching Mathieu van der Poel’s race-winning attack from the A23 highway, but in the quiet anticipation of the Roubaix velodrome’s shower block, it was the echoing chants of those gathered outside that were enough to take the breath away.

“Mathieu! Mathieu! Mathieu,” roared the tens of supporters gathered outside this nondescript building, whilst inside, a smattering of photographers primed their lenses, took a deep inhalation of breath and prepared for one of their most important appointments of the year. Alongside them I stood, mesmerised by the history and symbolism that is housed between these walls.

For all the pomp and ceremony of Van der Poel winning Paris-Roubaix as the reigning world champion, flashing his rainbow jersey to the adoring public inside the Roubaix velodrome, it is the image of the grey, eerie and traditional showers that is just as intrinsic to the rich history of this great race.

Between the decades-old Vélodrome André-Pétrieux — the iconic home of the Paris-Roubaix bike race — and the modern, state-of-the-art Stab Vélodrome de Roubaix that was built just a few hundred metres away in 2012, lies a red and white municipal building that in any other context, would be overlooked by the passer-by. However, the metal gate and small crowd gathered in its courtyard caught my attention.

With interviews at the team buses by now completed, all it took was a small detour from the press room to enter the courtyard of Roubaix’s shower block. A flash of my accreditation later and there I was, ushered inside an ageing complex that in any other sport would have been long forgotten, but in cycling, evokes the same feelings as when I first stepped inside the Long Room at Lord’s Cricket Ground as a youngster.

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The Roubaix shower block is an antiquated but iconic building

There I was, within the bowels of the toughest bike race in the world and soon to have two of the best bike racers in the world for company. I’ve long wondered what it might be like to step foot in this room many decades after it first gained notoriety, but suffice it to say, the Paris-Roubaix shower block has stood the test of time.

A journey back in time

To step inside the shower block is to place yourself in a bygone age. Sure, there are the occasional markers of the modern day — the fluorescent light strips on the ceiling, glass-framed posters from recent races hanging on the wall and the avant-garde cameras yielded by those in attendance — but for the most part, this place has remained visually unchanged since its origin in 1936.

Lining the two rooms, which are separated by a singular door, are rows of sandstone changing cubicles which are three-walled, contain a wooden bench some two feet off the ground and quite noticeably, are marked by the engraved brass plaques which contain the names of past winners.

Read more: Paris-Roubaix: Moments that have defined cycling's most-loved Monument

From MUSEEUW J. and KELLY S. to BOONEN T. and HINAULT B., these plaques are held in place by two small screws and within each cubicle, a small sign is affixed that details the hows, whys and wherefores of each victor’s success. Each winner since the first man to use these showers in 1943 is invited to be at the unveiling of their commemorative plaque.

Last September, it was the turn of Alison Jackson, who even grabbed the tools herself to screw her plaque to the wall. The 2023 winner of Paris-Roubaix Femmes avec Zwift had been invited by Les Amis de Paris-Roubaix, the volunteer group that runs the Roubaix velodrome museum and helps to maintain the cobbles.

Read more: Embracing the history of Paris-Roubaix: Alison Jackson claims a space for women

80 years earlier, it had been race winner Marcel Kint who first used the showers inside Roubaix’s Parc des Sports, having won the first edition of the race since the outbreak of war in 1939. The facilities, shared by the Roubaix boys’ school, were a luxury for the time, as noted by Philippe Bouvet in his book Paris-Roubaix: A Journey Through Hell.

These days, the showers are no longer contemporary and nor is there a desire for them to be so. In fact, when the showers were partially rebuilt around a decade ago, the town of Roubaix had to work hard to track down sandstone and equipment similar to that used when the stone was first quarried in 1935. Nonetheless, riders who remain in touch with the tradition of the sport still make their pilgrimage to the building each year and resist the temptation of washing in the relative luxury of their team buses.

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Jasper Philipsen claimed his second runner-up spot in as many years, on another ticker-tape day for Alpecin-Deceuninck

Owing to the low-walled changing cubicles, the first face I see when I enter the hallowed block is that of Sunday’s runner-up, Jasper Philipsen. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider has enjoyed his shower and is merrily chatting to his team’s press officer and the onlooking press.

These low-rise walls were designed for conversation. It was over these parapets that Jean Stablinski was derided by his fellow riders in 1968 for having suggested the introduction of the Trouée d'Arenberg to the race organisers and it was here on Saturday that Elynor and Zoe Bäckstedt swapped war stories in adjoining cubicles after their second Paris-Roubaix Femmes ridden together.

Read more: Introducing Paris-Roubaix’s five most iconic cobblestone sectors

It is hard to get away from the rich history of this shower block, not that you would want to. As I take up residence in the cubicle opposite Philipsen — that of Eddy Merckx, winner in 1968, 1970 and 1973, by the way — over my right-hand shoulder is a plaque denoting CREPEL P., Dernier en 1968. That’s right, the greatest cyclist of all time shares his cubicle with Philippe Crépel, the last-place finisher in 1968.

Crépel, a member of the Roubaix bicycle club, finished 43rd (last on the day) and was jokingly honoured with his own plaque. “He shed a tear. So we didn’t dare remove the plaque, once we saw what it meant to him,” recounted the secretary of the club to author Bouvet.

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As detailed in Bouvet's book, Crépel would later refer to himself as a 'representative of all those who have finished Paris-Roubaix'

It is only apt that Crépel’s name remains, symbolising all those riders who were able to finish Paris-Roubaix, despite the hardships suffered out on the cobbles. These showers are a meeting place for the champions and the also-rans, a place where the heroes and the survivors come together to wash away dirt, sweat and (often) blood all the same.

Here, even the rainbow stripes of the world champion give way to the bare skin of the mortal man beneath.

With a yank of the chain, Mathieu van der Poel makes his pilgrimage

“Mathieu! Mathieu! Mathieu!” chant the crowd standing outside the shower block. Their calls alert us to the imminent arrival of the day’s imperious race winner, Mathieu van der Poel. By now, his teammate Philipsen has taken his leave and the 30 showers stand empty at the back of the room, awaiting their final dirty and heroic rider. His shower might be the most enjoyable of the lot.

“It’s not a cold shower. Also when you’re the last one there and no one else is using up the water, then it’s actually pretty good,” Alison Jackson had told me a few days earlier.

Without further ado, wide open swung the door and in bellowed the ferocious cheers of those outside. There they would have to wait, however, as their champion strode into the showers alone. His race-winning bike was in tow, of course, and would soon be propped up against the wall still sporting the mud and grime of northern France.

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Canyon has seen its bikes ridden to three Monument victories in a row this spring

Beginning to unzip his rainbow jersey, Van der Poel walks into the left-hand room and heads immediately for his cubicle. Neighboured by GODEFROOT W., the Dutchman’s plaque from 2023 will soon need updating to reflect his latest conquest, but first, Van der Poel has a date with history.

Read more: Alpecin-Deceuninck conquer Paris-Roubaix: ‘Mathieu is at the best level we have ever seen’

As the photographers look on with a respectful silence, Van der Poel strides to the cubicle at the back left of the room and stands beneath the showerhead. There, he disrobes from his rainbow skinsuit and grabs a bar of soap. With a yank of the metal chain, water begins to flow and he takes a second to let the moment sink in. Never one to miss his cue, Alpecin-Deceuninck’s press officer hurriedly places two bottles of Alpecin hair shampoo on the parapet, much to the amusement of all in attendance.

For the next couple of minutes, Van der Poel attempts to wipe the day’s dirt from his body, face and hair, stopping every so often to give another yank of the chain, as though he were featuring in one of the 20th-century’s great black and white classic films. It is an image that would appear alien in any other sport, but for all lucky enough to be standing in the Roubaix showers, another chapter is added to the rich tapestry of Paris-Roubaix.

Final snapshots taken, the press are kindly invited to take their leave and time is called on this year’s Paris-Roubaix. We exit centre stage left, as Van der Poel is allowed a moment to himself.

Stripped of his rainbows, the Dutchman is just another man. He sweats, his crevices are still full of grime and he'd rather have a moment of privacy than a dozen cameras in his face — understandable — but in reality, the 29-year-old is already a giant among men. Left alone in the room full of champions, Van der Poel has joined an elite club of 12 riders to have won Paris-Roubaix twice.

In twelve months’ time he can look to join the seven riders with three victories to their name and somewhere down the line, perhaps he will trouble Roger De Vlaeminck and Tom Boonen with four cobblestones on the mantelpiece. For the time being, though, he will take a moment to gather himself before venturing outside and back into the arms of his devoted supporters.

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It may have been a great marketing opportunity for the team, but then again, cycling has long been a billboard for its sponsors

With that, the showers are left empty and the curtain falls on this year’s Queen of the Classics. For the next 12 months, this nondescript building will return to anonymity, save for the odd guided tour, but there it will remain, echoing with the stories of days gone by and waiting for the next tales to be written on the cobblestones of l’Enfer du Nord. This is the place that Paris-Roubaix will always call home.

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