Prize fight in Flanders: Boonen versus Cancellara

The expectation has been growing in Flanders all week. In cafes on cobbled squares, newspapers are scrutinised and brows are furrowed. The debates rage fore and aft in bars and restaurants. Rooms fall into hushed reverence for television sports bulletins. The order changes, but the names uttered are always the same. Boonen and Cancellara or Cancellara and Boonen. The Ali and Frazier of recent Tour of Flanders history.

Barry Ryan
Head of Features

Barry Ryan is Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.