'Unique and hugely exciting' – George Hincapie on Modern Adventure Pro Cycling's invitation to Paris-Roubaix

Modern Adventure Pro Cycling will race Paris-Roubaix in their debut season, which team boss George Hincapie has described as "unique and hugely exciting".

The news was announced by race organisers ASO on Thursday morning, as the routes and teams for Paris-Roubaix and Paris-Roubaix Femmes were revealed. It will be the first year the two races will happen on the same day, Sunday 12 April. The women's race will finish after the men's.

All 18 WorldTour teams will be present in the men's race, along with seven ProTeams: Cofidis, Modern Adventure, Pinarello-Q36.5, Flanders Baloise, TotalEnergies, Tudor and Unibet Rose Rockets.

"Having the opportunity to race Paris-Roubaix in our first season as a professional team is both unique and hugely exciting. It's a race that's close to my heart, one I have great memories of as a rider and now, together, we get to experience this from a whole new angle," explained Hincapie.

“It'll also be a great opportunity to showcase the strength of our equipment partners on the biggest stage. It'll be a big test for all the team, but we'll continue to approach it with diligent preparation and as a collective unit. Once again, we thank the ASO for their belief in our mission as a team and for giving us this opportunity."

American outfit Modern Adventure's first WorldTour race, the UAE Tour, begins on Monday 16 February.

The women's race has all 14 Women's WorldTour teams, plus seven Women's ProTeams: Cofidis, Laboral Kutxa Fundación Euskadi, Lotto Intermarché, Ma Petite Enterprise, Mayenne Monbana My Pie, VolkerWessels and St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93. The presence of St Michel will allow former champion Alison Jackson to ride.

Men's route tweaked

The 123rd edition of Paris-Roubaix will look mainly the same as recent editions, with 258.3km that includes 30 cobbled sectors between Compiègne and Roubaix's outdoor velodrome. However, a "rare" sector, sector 26, has been added early on, featuring an 800m climb.

Race director Thierry Gouvenous said: "By veering slightly east towards the village of Briastre, we arrive at a situation where the first four sectors follow one another in quick succession, with almost no asphalt in between, creating an unmatched density of cobbles.

"Two years ago, Alpecin-Deceuninck had already begun to scatter the peloton at this stage. And at the end of this sequence, we are adding sector #26, even more rarely used and featuring an 800-metre climb."

More cobbles for women

The first Sunday edition of Paris-Roubaix Femmes will look a bit different, with no laps around Denain to start and extra sectors put in.

The 2026 race will still run from Denain to Roubaix, with 148.5km of racing, but there are new cobbled sectors at Haussy and Saulzoir, and sector 18 at Haveluy à Wallers, a four-star test

"We have removed the loops around Denain," Gouvenou said, "to take the peloton a little further south and add more cobbles, and Haveluy is one of the sectors that could prove decisive."

The women's race is expected to finish around 6:20pm CET.