Alessandro Petacchi (LPR Brakes) won Wednesday's Scheldeprijs Vlaanderen semi-classic race in Belgium.
Paris-Roubaix winner Tom Boonen (Quick Step) was one of the high-profile victims of a large crash in the final 100 metres of the race, which was caused when Robbie McEwen (Katusha) and Greg Van Avermaet (Silence-Lotto) wiped out.
Despite having hundreds of wins on his palmares, this is Petacchi's first win on Belgian soil.
Britain's top finisher was Roger Hammond (Cervelo) at 30th, 30 seconds behind Petacchi. Hammond's team-mate and fellow Brit Jeremy Hunt came in 54th.
Isle of Man sprint ace Mark Cavendish (Columbia), winner of the race for the past two years, elected to miss the event.
