Check out our minute-by-minute coverage of the 108th edition of Paris-Roubaix, the 'Queen of the Classics'.
Flecha third behind runaway winner Cancellara
1615: Thanks for following the race with us today - check out the rest of the website for all the reaction from a Team Sky-perspective.
1612: The attention now switches to the battle for the other podium places and it's been another great ride from Team Sky's
Juan Antonio Flecha who takes third, just behind Thor Hushovd. Typical of the man, there's a fine sporting gesture from Flecha who applauds the Norwegian over the line.
1610: Fabian Cancellara swings into the Roubaix Velodrome after rightly milks the applause. It's been an absolute masterclass by the Swiss star and he's able to savour the victory. It's his second win at Paris-Roubaix, four years after his first.
1609: Fabian Cancellara is on the last section of cobbles - he's getting a fantastic reception as he heads for the Roubaix Velodrome.
1607: Juan Antonio Flecha tries to put in a dig as he and Thor Hushovd battle for second and third. Hushovd stays with him though.
1606: We'll soon be at the legendary Roubaix Velodrome and
Juan Antonio Flecha and Thor Hushovd now have a lead of over 40 seconds on the four men behind them. Up front the Saxo Bank car has already started the celebrations with Fabian Cancellara!
1603: There's under 5km to go for Fabian Cancellara who is poised to become only the tenth man to claim the Flanders/Roubaix double in the same season. It's been an astonishing display from him and his lead is holding steady at 2:34.
1600: It's looking good for another podium finish for Team Sky's
Juan Antonio Flecha. He and Thor Hushovd - in second and third - have a lead of exactly 20 seconds over Tom Boonen and co. There are 6km to go.
1556: We've got just under 10km to go. Fabian Cancellara leads by 2:50 to
Juan Antonio Flecha and Thor Hushovd. There's then another four-man chase group, featuring Tom Boonen, which is now a further 22 seconds behind.
1553: Juan Antonio Flecha tries to encourage Thor Hushovd to take a turn on the front. The other four men have come back together around 18 seconds behind them but the extent of Flecha's attack is underlined as Fabian Cancellara's advantage is now down to 2:46.
1551: Juan Antonio Flecha and Thor Hushovd have opened up a small gap now, leaving Tom Boonen back in fourth place. It looks a good move and the pair have 12km to go as they chase a podium place.
1549: Thor Hushovd tries to get away from the other five members of the chase group but Tom Boonen closes it down. Now
Juan Antonio Flecha piles on the pressure and the group is in close to splintering.
1546: There are no signs that Cancellara is tiring, just the opposite in fact as his lead is now 3:01 with 15.5km remaining.
1543: Fabian Cancellara is through section five (Camphin-en-Pévèle) of the cobbles and has extended his lead to 2:49. Next up is the Carrefour de l'Arbre.
1539: With the focus on
Juan Antonio Flecha in the last 10 minutes or so it's time for a quick update on Fabian Cancellara's lead which now stands at 2:32 with 19km to go.
1536: That was a brave attempt by
Juan Antonio Flecha but he's going to be reeled back in as the chase group have worked well together.
1534: This is a great move by
Juan Antonio Flecha. He's got a fantastic record in this race and has a real chance here of another podium finish. His attack has dropped a couple of other riders from the chase group which is now down to five men.
1532: Juan Antonio Flecha has launched the first attack from the chase group. He's able to ride away from the other seven riders. There's 24km to go.
1531: Huge crowds are lining the route and it's one-way traffic at the head of affairs as Fabian Cancellara's lead is now out to 2:25. The eight-man chase group, which includes Team Sky's
Juan Antonio Flecha remains intact.
1526: This is an astonishing performance by Fabian Cancellara and his lead has now just gone over two minutes.
1524: Team Sky's
Juan Antonio Flecha is one of eight riders in the chase group - the other seven are Tom Boonen, Roger Hammond, Sebastian Hinault, Leif Hoste, Thor Hushovd, Bjorn Leukmans and Filippo Pozzato.
1521: Tom Boonen is driving the chasing group, with
Juan Antonio Flecha right on his wheel, but Fabian Cancellara's advantage is going up all the time. It's now 1:40 with 30km to go.
1516: Fabian Cancellara continues to power clear - he's now one minute and 26 seconds ahead as he goes into section seven.
1513: Roger Hammond, Thor Hushovd,
Juan Antonio Flecha and Tom Boonen are heading the chasing group but, as yet, not making an impression into Fabian Cancellara's lead which has now increased to one minute and four seconds.
1510: Fabian Cancellara is onto section eight (Pont-Thibaut to Ennevelin) and his lead is growing all the time, it's now 55 seconds.
1508: Fabian Cancellara has flown now - he leads by 48 seconds with just under 40km remaining. There's then a further 15 seconds back to a second chase group.
1506: Fabian Cancellara comes into sector nine (Mérignies to Le Prez). It's a short, straight section and doesn't cause him any problems. His lead is now up to 35 seconds.
1505: The gap is now up to 30 seconds. An eight-man group has formed behind, with Tom Boonen and
Juan Antonio Flecha taking turns on the front.
1503: Fabian Cancellara is off the cobbles and has already carved out a 20-seconds advantage. He's going to try and time trial it to the finish now and claim a famous Flanders/Roubaix double.
1501: Fabian Cancellara has ridden away from Björn Leukemans - this is another staggering performance from the Swiss star but there are still 45kms to go.
1500: Fabian Cancellara and Vacansoleil's Björn Leukemans now lead the way.
1458: Fabian Cancellara has got up to the leading trio of riders and gone straight past them. Meanwhile Tom Boonen,
Juan Antonio Flecha and Thor Hushovd are trying to bridge the gap.
1456: Fabian Cancellara has put in a big attack at the front and gone clear of the main group. Tom Boonen doesn't react immediately.
1455: We've got exactly 50km to go and the front group of favourites is being whittled down.
Juan Antonio Flecha is right in the mix for Team Sky.
1454: Ag2R's Sébastien Hinault has opened up a small lead but Tom Boonen has him in his sights.
1452: Boonen is out of the saddle on the cobblestones as he attacks again but is chased down by Roger Hammond.
1450: We're into sector 11 (Auchy-lez-Orchies to Bersée) and things are really getting strung out. There look to be two other Team Sky riders as well as
Juan Antonio Flecha in the front group.
1446: Time for a quick recap - we've got a front group of around 25 riders now - including
Juan Antonio Flecha - and there are 55kms to go.
1442: Roger Hammond's attack is soon reeled in - Tom Boonen and Fabian Cancellara are now back at the head of affairs.
1440: There's a crucial section of cobbles coming up - Orchies - and Tom Boonen attacks again. Again though Fabian Cancellara responds. And now Roger Hammond has a dig and quickly opens up a small gap.
1438: There's an attack from Tom Boonen with 60km to go but Fabian Cancellara and
Juan Antonio Flecha respond.
1435: Fabian Cancellara is starting to push on with 63km remaining. Tom Boonen is right on his wheel, as is
Flecha.
1431: The breakaway which started at 59km is almost over - just four riders remain in the front group, including
Chris Sutton, and they are just a handful of seconds ahead now.
1428: Tom Boonen is now driving the front part of the main peloton. Team Sky have at least three riders right there -
Michael Barry,
Juan Antonio Flecha and
Mathew Hayman. Remember too that
Greg Henderson and
Chris Sutton are still up front in that initial breakaway group.
1425: Michael Barry continues to push hard on the front - this could prove to be a significant point of the race as the pressure is really being ramped up.
1423: Team Sky's
Michael Barry is on the front of the main peloton as we move into section 14 (Tilloy to Sars-et-Rosières). He's doing a great job and taking the likes of
Juan Antonio Flecha, Tom Boonen and co past a few of the riders who have dropped off the early breakaway group.
1420: The gap is yo-yoing a little now - it's down to 20 seconds again. We've got 71km remaining and are just out of section 15. It looks like the pace has dropped a fraction.
1418: We're into section 15 (Warlaing to Brillon) and the riders are split on either side of the road.
1416: The gap is holding now and has actually gone back up to 50 seconds. It's now a nine-man lead group and continues to feature both
Greg Henderson and
Chris Sutton.
1413: There's a quick bike change for last week's Tour of Flanders hero Fabian Cancellara. He's straight back to the peloton.
1407: The field is starting to get strung out now - we've got 80km to go. Saxo Bank are really pushing it at the front, with Team Sky right with them.
1404: Anyone wanting to know exactly where we are -
take a look at this photo from
Michael Barry which was taken at the recon on Thursday.
1402: Time looks to be running out pretty swiftly for the breakaway group - the gap is down to just 20 seconds with 83km to go.
1358: Saxo Bank are controlling things at the front of the main peloton with six of their men to the fore including Fabian Cancellara. Team Sky are coming up en masse too around
Juan Antonio Flecha as he tracks Tom Boonen. It's game on!
1355: The race is coming alive now and the front group of 19 is now splitting as the lead is whittled down to just 45 seconds. There are just 11 riders left together and they include both
Greg Henderson and
Chris Sutton. CJ takes a turn on the front.
1351: They are out of the Arenberg now and the riders take on liquids,
Juan Antonio Flecha grabbing a distinctive green Gatorade bottle.
1350: The front three at the head of the main peloton on the Arenberg are Tom Boonen,
Juan Antonio Flecha and Fabian Cancellara - all are looking smooth so far.
1349: Tom Boonen takes up the pacesetting on the front - and
Juan Antonio Flecha is right behind him.
1348: The main peloton is onto the Arenberg, with Fabian Cancellara leading the way. The gap is down to just 1:12 now.
1346: The breakaway group are jostling for position as they hit the fabled Arenberg. It's 2.4km in length and packed with fans.
1343: There's a really select group that's just moved ahead of the main peloton and it includes
Juan Antonio Flecha and
Mathew Hayman who is driving it along. Right with them are Fabian Cancellara and Tom Boonen.
1340: Just ahead of the Arenberg, here's a recap of the 19-man leading group: 8 Wijnants (QST), 14 Ignatiev (KAT), 24 Hunt (CTT), 35 Lang (OLO), 45
Henderson (SKY), 47
Sutton (SKY), 56 Klostergård (SAX), 93 Goss (THR), 94 Hansen (THR), 102 Flens (RAB), 104 Leezer (RAB), 125 Gène (BTL), 138 Zingle (COF), 152 Gardeyn (VAC), 162 Curvers (SKS), 164 Docker (SKS), 196 Isasi (EUS), 223 Engoulvent (SAU) and 228 Poulhiès (SAU).
1334: We're into section 18 - after this it's the Arenberg. The race is really starting to hot up now and the gap has tumbled down to 2:02.
1332: There's a crash right in the middle of the main peloton. Five or six riders have gone down but Team Sky weren't involved.
1330: We've got just over 100km to go and the gap has increased slightly to 2:38. Team Sky are now showing up well towards the front of the main peloton, with
Kurt-Asle Arvesen prominent in his national champion's jersey.
1320: We're going through section 19 at Monchaux-sur-Écaillon and Saxo Bank continue to head the main peloton. The gap has steadied slightly at 2:34. We're not too far away now from section 17 - the Trench of Arenberg which virtually defines this race.
1316: Conditions remain dry and the forecast suggests it's going to stay that way. The gap continues to come down - it's now 2:45.
1312: We've got 117km to go and the gap has just dropped below three minutes. The main peloton are in sector 21 and Fabian Cancellara's Saxo Bank are to the fore at the front.
1305: The lead group, containing Team Sky's
Chris Sutton,
Greg Henderson and 17 others, has seen their advantage trimmed to 3:30 after 137km. The pace is starting to increase - we're around 25 minutes behind schedule as the headwinds and crosswinds have already played a big part.
1250: The leaders have stretched their advantage to just over four minutes and are now approaching
section 22.
1245: For a taste of what's in store for the riders check out
Michael Barry's photo gallery from the team's recon earlier this week.
1225: We're into the cobbles (111km gone, 148km remaining) and the leading group of 19 riders, who have been away since the 59km-mark, now have an advantage of 1:40.
1210: The first cobbled section is fast approaching and the lead group, which contains Team Sky's
Greg Henderson and
Chris Sutton, has extended their lead to one minute and 15 seconds.
1140: We're 79km in now, with another 180km to go. The cobblestones kick in after 97.5km and we've got all the details in our
in-depth route guide.
1120: Greg Henderson, who gave Team Sky such a flying start to their debut season at the Tour Down Under, was a late addition to the roster for today's race, coming in for Edvald Boasson-Hagen who continues to recover from his Achilles injury.
1115: We've got a first attack of the day to report, with 19 riders - including Team Sky's
Greg Henderson and
Chris Sutton - opening up a lead of just under 30 seconds on the rest. All the big favourites, including Team Sky's
Juan Antonio Flecha and the likes of Fabian Cancellara and Tom Boonen remain in the main peloton.
1045: Senior Sports Director Scott Sunderland is in charge of Team Sky today and this is a race he's already won twice as a DS. We'll be speaking to him later this afternoon for his reaction to today's events.
1020: We caught up with many of Team Sky's riders in the days leading up to the race and what came across most of all was just how much Paris-Roubaix means to them.
Juan Antonio Flecha said: "It's a great race. It's just one day a year and you really try and enjoy everything about it."
Mathew Hayman's take was: "The history of the race goes back so many years and it's difficult to put into words just how special it is. And then to be able to ride in it and battle with the elements and the roads is another whole experience."
1000: It's dry and sunny at the start but there's likely to be a headwind for much of the day.
0950: The Queen of the Classics - or the Hell of the North - is under way, with Team Sky riding in their very first Paris-Roubaix.
Juan Antonio Flecha heads an eight-man line-up, along with
Kurt-Asle Arvesen,
Michael Barry,
Mathew Hayman,
Greg Henderson,
Ian Stannard,
Chris Sutton and
Geraint Thomas.
