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Sixteen people were injured, three of them seriously, when a race organizers’ motorbike struck a crowd of spectators during Paris-Roubaix on Sunday. Fire and rescue officials from Lille said 15 victims had to be evacuated, including three in serious condition, including a 4-year-old child. Colonel Bruno Moulart, commander of emergency intervention, said the injured were members of the same family, adding that he did not believe any lives were at risk. The victims were being transported to hospitals in Lille and Valenciennes, according to police.

Defending champion Tom Boonen soloed to victory in a dusty, crash-filled Paris-Roubaix on Sunday as Quick Step, Cervélo TestTeam and Silence-Lotto slugged it out toe to toe over the cobblestone trophy awarded to the victor in the Hell of the North.?? "The race was very hard," said the big Belgian after collecting his third win here, following triumphs in 2005 and 2008. Praising runner-up Filippo Pozzato (Katusha), he added: "This victory for me is the most beautiful because I beat Pozzato, who is a great champion."

Editor's Note: Will Frischkorn is a pro with the Garmin-Slipstream team. He is participating in Paris-Roubaix on Sunday. You can read his previous VeloNews.com columns here.

Fresh from retiring from one of the peloton’s most prolific careers, Erik Zabel is still busy at the races. These days he's working with the young riders at Columbia-Highroad. Mark Cavendish won Milan-San Remo after consulting with Zabel. "That was just amazing," Zabel said of Cavendish's closing sprint, and now the German veteran is officially working with several of the young riders on Columbia. "I'm an advisor for the young riders’ development for the Highroad team," Zabel said at the Tour of Flanders.

South African Greg Minnaar was mobbed by spectators after winning the downhill race Sunday at the UCI World Cup downhill event in Pietermaritzburg. Minnaar received a reception normally reserved for South African football, rugby union and cricket stars after pipping Australian Mike Hannah for first place on a forest-lined course near the KwaZulu-Natal city. Competition was fierce with 28 finalists cracking the four-minute barrier and Minnaar clocked 3:43.44 after sailing over jumps and pedaling furiously through flatter sections.

The following rosters were provided by ASO, organizers of Paris-Roubaix and updated as of Saturday, April 11.

Quick Step

Saxo Bank

Astana's Alberto Contador won the Tour of the Basque Country on Saturday, after clinching the sixth and final stage, a 24km time trial around the town of Zalla. It was the second straight Tour of the Basque Country title win for the defending Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España champion. "It's incredible how I continue to progress in my time trial work," said Contador, who took part in the event as part of his preparations for the Tour de France.

Olympic champion Julien Absalon of France had to settle for second place behind Spaniard Jose Hermida in the UCI World Cup cross-country mountain bike race in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, on Saturday. In a thrilling race, near the KwaZulu-Natal city watched by 6,000 spectators, Absalon moved to the front at the halfway mark with only Hermida and South African Barry Stander able to respond. The lead changed one lap later with Hermida building a 15-second advantage that kept him in front until the finish and Absalon held off a late Stander surge.

Only a few riders are capable of winning Sunday’s 107th edition of Paris-Roubaix, and the number of favorites gets even smaller when you consider the strength of their teams. Given that premise, the winner should come from the Columbia-Highroad, Quick Step, Rabobank or Saxo Bank teams. And that means that George Hincapie, Tom Boonen, Stijn Devolder, Juan Antonio Flecha or Fabian Cancellara will be on the top step of the podium in the Roubaix velodrome Sunday evening.

The 259 kilometers between Compiègne and Roubaix are largely flat, but the Hell of the North has never been distinguished by climbs. What sets the so-called Queen of the Classics apart are the 52.9 kilometers of pavé, the often rough cobbles dating back as many as 200 years and carefully maintained by fans, promoters and local governments in northern France.

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"Was winning the Tour seven times that offensive?!?" — Lance Armstrong firing a bon-mot shot at the French via Twitter

Frenchman Miguel Martinez, the 2000 Olympic cross-country champion, has been fired by his Felt international team just days before the 2009 World Cup opener in Pietermartizburg, South Africa. According to Agence France Presse, Martinez, known as "Little Mig," was recently handed a four-month suspended prison sentence for assaulting his wife. Martinez has had similar brushes with the law in the past two years. Felt International released a statement saying it was ending its relationship with Martinez due to “unbridgeable differences.”

Lance Armstrong said Friday that French anti-doping authorities have been working to prevent him from racing in this year’s Tour de France. Armstrong, who says he has submitted to 24 drug tests since his return to professional racing in September, said the French anti-doping body (AFLD) appears poised to keep him from riding the race he won seven times between 1999 and 2005.

Sean Kelly once said that “a Paris-Roubaix without rain is not a true Paris-Roubaix.” Although now reporting from the sidelines, the two-time winner of the Hell of the North may get at least some satisfaction on Sunday as forecasts call for a 30-percent chance of scattered showers throughout the day when riders embark on the 259.5-kilometer (161 miles) route from Compiègne to the northern French city of Roubaix.

Fueling up once the alarm sounds is critical.

A day after Michael Albasini won after a long breakaway, Marco Pinotti delivered Columbia-Highroad’s second straight stage victory at the Vuelta al País Vasco on Friday. The veteran Italian put his strong time trialing skills to good use in a late attack and then held off a late charge from Vicenzo Nibali (Liquigas) to win a cold and rainy fifth stage from Gueñes to Zalla.

International cycling chief Pat McQuaid on Friday defended Lance Armstrong and criticized France's anti-doping authority (AFLD) over its handling of Armstrong's alleged misbehavior at an out-of-competition anti-doping test in France last month. On Thursday the AFLD announced it was pursuing Armstrong for unprofessional behavior, claiming the Texan had violated strict dope-testing rules.

Johan Bruyneel vigorously defended Lance Armstrong against accusations by French authorities that the seven-time Tour de France champion may have run afoul with anti-doping rules during an out-of-competition test last month in southern France. The Astana general manager, who arrived at the Vuelta al País Vasco on Thursday evening, told the Spanish sports daily MARCA that Armstrong did nothing wrong and insisted that the French have it out for Armstrong.

Chris Horner (Astana) jumped on a plane Friday to return to the United States, but he’s hopeful he’ll be on another flight back to Europe in time to start the Giro d’Italia. Horner, 37, survived a harrowing crash in Thursday’s fourth stage at the Vuelta al País Vasco when he went sliding under a steel guard-rail and escaped without serious injury. Initial X-rays taken Thursday evening at a Spanish hospital did not reveal any broken bones, but the veteran American will undergo more examinations upon his return to the U.S.

The Italian cycling community is big on traditions, and the Giro d’Italia organizer’s choice to repeat one of the most famous stages in the event’s 100-year history was greeted with enthusiasm when it was announced in the winter. At 254-kilometer, stage 10 from Cuneo to Pinerolo through the high Alps was identical to the one in 1949, when campionissimo Fausto Coppi destroyed the opposition with a massive 200km-plus solo breakaway that saw him finish almost 12 minutes ahead of the runner-up, his national rival Gino Bartali, and more than 19 minutes ahead of the rest.

Andrew Bajadali secured the final overall win of the Tour of Thailand Thursday, after his Kelly Benefit Strategies team controlled the action for much of the final stage, a 76km circuit race in Udon Thani. Kelly's wrapped up the race with Jake Erker in fourth overall, Zach Bell sixth and Dan Bowman seventh. The team also won the team classification and finished second on points.

Paris-Roubaix Tech: Team BMC's SLX

The 2009 UCI mountain bike World Cup kicks off this weekend in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. The race marks the first time in the series’ 19-year history that an event featuring cross-country, downhill and four-cross racing will be held on the African continent. A gravity-only World Cup was held in the winemaking city of Stellenbosch on the Western Cape from 1997-98. “Mountain biking is taking on a new dimension,” said UCI president Patrick McQuaid.