TOM BOONEN RETURNS TO RACING

The Belgian Quick Step team today announced that Tom Boonen will make his comeback to racing at the Tour of Belgium later this week. The former world champion will lead a team of eight as he starts his build up to the Tour de France.

Boonen missed last weeks Tour of Catalonia due to a fractured toe sustained on a training ride, but is already returning to action. ?Thankfully my broken toe isn?t causing me too many problems and I even managed to do some training a few days after the injury,? Boonen said in a press release put out by his team.

?My shin and knee areas are still quite painful meaning I can?t really do any intense training. I?m behind with my training but I think it is time to start racing again getting myself back into the rhythm of things in preparation for the Tour de France.?

Boonen shone in the Belgium semi-classics this spring, but struggled in the bigger races. Amazingly, Quick Step still haven?t won a ProTour race this year. The five-day Tour of Belgium, that runs from May 30 to June 3, is part of the lower ranking UCI European Calendar

?Gaining a win won?t be my main objective as I?ll only be able to tell at what point my condition is during the race,? Boonen continued. ?We have a very strong team; if the occasion arises I?ll be more than happy to put myself at my team-mate?s disposal as they have so many times helped me gain my victories?.