1983 Paris–Roubaix
The 1983 Paris–Roubaix was a road cycling race that took place on 10 April 1983 in Northern France.
| Race details | |||||||||||||
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| Dates | April 10, 1983 | ||||||||||||
| Stages | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Distance | 274 km (170.3 mi) | ||||||||||||
| Winning time | 6h 47' 51" | ||||||||||||
| Results | |||||||||||||
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As has happened frequently before, an important development to the 1983 Paris–Roubaix took place at the cobbles of the Trouée d'Arenberg, with former three times winner Francesco Moser setting a brutal pace. Moser continued his torrid pace through the next tough cobbled sections, reducing the field to just 5 riders.
Despite crashing twice, Hennie Kuiper maintained a position in the lead group, and knowing that Moser possessed the superior finish, Kuiper attacked from distance. This turned out to be a brilliant move as the other riders of the breakaway, Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle, Marc Madiot and Ronan De Meyer looked to Moser to chase Kuiper down. This tactical disarray allowed Kuiper to open a 1'30 lead with only 16 km to go.
Within the last six kilometers Kuiper suffered another setback, this time a puncture. His team managed to deliver a new bike in time, and Hennie Kuiper entered the velodrome in Roubaix on his own.
In the sprint for second Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle narrowly beat Francesco Moser.
The 1983 version of the Paris–Roubaix is generally regarded as a classic primarily due to Hennie Kuiper overcoming two crashes and a puncture, yet still strong enough to prevail in the face of some very elite competition. Of his fellow escapees, Francesco Moser was a former 3 times winner of the race, while both Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle and Marc Madiot would go on to win the event twice each.
Below, the results for the 1983 edition of the Paris–Roubaix cycling classic.