Third place in Paris-Roubaix is a testament to how far Stéphane Küng has come as a Classics rider, and while a monumental podium finish is no mean feat, this Groupama-FDJ rider sees in the small cobbled trophy he holds from the lower podiums the He sees potential in the small cobblestone trophy he holds in his hands from the lower podium.

This is the 28-year-old's seventh time riding Paris-Roubaix, but he has never finished higher than 11th.

"I've made some really big steps this year," he said. I'm racing at a different level than I did last year, and mentally, I'm confident I can keep up with the best until the finals."

"I had a far from ideal start in Paris-Roubaix, and that's exactly what happened.

"With this confidence, I can stay calm in critical situations like the beginning of the race. Roubaix is a hard, long race, so anything can happen."

The critical situation Cung was referring to this time was a crosswind break-up early in the race. Ineos Grenadiers set the pace at the front and the gap quickly widened, putting many of the favorites, including Wout Van Aert (Jumbo Visma) and Mathieu Van Der Pol (Alpecin Phoenix), in a difficult situation.

"I didn't get off to a good start," said van der Pol. There were a lot of other leading riders in the second group after 60 km, and everyone was a little bit on the back foot."

"Then we all kind of looked at each other a little bit: ...... But thanks to the team, we stayed up there. But because of the team, we stayed up there. We were able to turn it around."

It took a lot of chasing to do that, but once back in the competition, Kuehn kept pushing toward the front of the split race, which unfolded at a rapid pace in the dry conditions and intense, aggressive tactics. Race winner Dylan van Baar (Ineos Grenadiers) covered the 257.2 km in just 5 hours and 37 minutes.

The Swiss rider attributed the speed of the fastest race in history to a number of factors, from technical advances in equipment to the conditions, but also to the way the race unfolded.

"There wasn't a single dull moment throughout the entire race.

Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious), Tom Devlint (Intermarché Wanty-Gobert), Van Aert, and Küng finished 1:47 after Van Baar took the win and the cobbled trophy to fight for the last two steps on the podium.

"Everyone was in the podium.

"Guys, I was at my limit," said Küng. 'I saw the look on their faces and knew they were as tired as I was. And I told myself that I had to work hard from afar in the velodrome"

.

"I did a lot of track cycling when I first turned pro and when I was younger. So I came from behind with a lot of momentum, but from there it was also a mental battle. I couldn't crack Van Aert, but it was enough to finish on the podium."

Third place was Grupama-FDJ's best finish since 1997, when Frederic Guesdon won, and for Kühn it was his first podium at Monument.

"Sure, I prefer to finish higher and win races like this, but [the podium] is a great accomplishment. It's a hard race and it's an iconic race," said Kühn. [With the exception of Fabian Cancellara and Tom Boonen, Roubaix is a race that you can only win once if you are not involved in the championship contenders many times."

"I have this little cobblestone in my living room and when I look at it I know that one day my brother is still going."