Pro cyclist Teniel Campbell finishes 42nd at Paris-Roubaix

WOMEN’S pro cyclist Teniel Campbell improved on her 2021 showing at the Paris-Roubaix women’s road race by finishing 42nd at this year’s edition which rode off in France on Saturday.

Campbell, representing Team BikeExchange-Jayco, covered the challenging 125-kilometre distance of the women’s world team event in three hours, 19 minutes and 51 seconds. She churned out this result from a bunch of over 130 female pro cyclists.

At last year’s race, she finished outside of the time limit. This meant Campbell was unable to complete the course within a specified time behind the race winner. This is usually defined as a percentage of the winner’s time.

But Campbell bounced back this time around and relishes her result on the gruelling European circuit. She was also the first in her team to cross the finish line. Their next best finisher was Ruby Roseman-Gannon, who placed 52nd. Winning the event was Italian Elisa Borghini (3:01.54) while Belgian Lotte Kopecky and Dutch rider Lucinda Brand rounded off the top three finishers.

After her brazen showing, Campbell posted pictures to her Facebook page lying flat out on the floor, exhausted.

She also wrote, “Good legs and strong mind. Good luck and lots of inner calmness. And then the biggest nightmare that I dreaded – a lack of fuel = bonking without revival. All did not end well in love and war. Good fun and epicness though. See you next year Roubaix.”

On April 1, the roadster was involved in a serious crash at the Gent-Wevelgem event in Belgium. She suffered broken teeth and a busted chin which ruled her out of the Belgian Tour of Flanders event. Since then, she has been recovering nicely.

She added, “Up next – final dental operation. Rest and building up for the second part of my season.”

Campbell is the first-ever Caribbean female to become a pro road cyclist.