Tom Boonen's win on Saturday in the town of Westmalle, home of the eponymous Belgian brew, increased...
As easy win coming up (Image credit: Luc Claessen)
Easy-peasy for Tommeke
Tom Boonen's win on Saturday in the town of Westmalle, home of the eponymous Belgian brew, increased his victories this season to 19 - even though his initial intention was to set up one of his team-mates. As a consequence, the world champion continued to hold onto his lead in the Eneco Tour of Benelux, but with tomorrow's time trial in Landgraaf, it's likely his spell will come to an end by Sunday evening.
"I pulled the sprint for [Steven] De Jongh or for [Wouter] Weylandt. I went hard and I think that Steven got a push. Then I saw Max van Heeswijk coming back and bent over double again in the last metres," said Boonen.
"I don't find it so bad that I have to ride in the red jersey again on Sunday," he said, referring to his comment in the newspapers after Friday's stage that he didn't want to wear the jersey, preferring his rainbow stripes.
"In the time trial, I can't wear my rainbow jersey anyway. And because of that, the affair really got blown out of proportion," Boonen remarked. "I think tomorrow [Sunday] it will be quite difficult to defend my leader's jersey in the time trial. My next objective will be a good performance in Monday's stage that finishes in my hometown of Balen."
