Madis Mihkels highest-ever placing Estonian in Paris–Roubaix race

Estonian cyclist Madis Mihkels finished in tenth place at the prestigious Paris–Roubaix one-day race on Sunday.
Mihkels, who races for the Intermarché–Wanty team, finished in a peloton that crossed the finish line just under five minutes after the winner, sharing places from eighth to 16th.
Mihkels earned 110 Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) points from his result, making it the 20-year-old Estonian's most significant achievement in his career to date.
His previous best was points for a fourth-place finish in a U-23 World Championship road race two years ago.
Post-race, Mihkels he was "Highly satisfied. I felt good, but there were critical moments. After the Arenberg sector, my tire went flat, and I had to expend a lot of energy to catch up. Because of this, I was in an energy debt on the following sectors and fell behind a couple of times, but I still managed to catch up."
"35 km before the end, my tire went flat again, so once more I had to spend energy to catch up. Over the last 10 kilometers, I was completely cramped, and I fell behind again in the last sector, but I kept a smooth power output and managed to catch up once again, a few kilometers later."
"So with all that in mind, a Top 10 at Roubaix is really a superb result for me," he added.
No other Estonian cyclist has finished as high up in the Paris–Roubaix race.
Up to now, the best result was Jaan Kirsipuu's 14th place, back in 1997.
Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin – Deceuninck) won the event with a time of 5:25.58, riding 60 kilometers of the 260-kilometer total alone, and not in a group.
Paris–Roubaix is one of the most prestigious one-day races in the cycling world and has been held since 1896.
It starts in the French capital, runs northwards, and ends at a velodrome near the Belgian border.
It is known for its challenging conditions (one of its nicknames being "a Sunday in hell"), which include some sections over cobblestones.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Siim Boikov