Nationality: Belgian
Date of birth: October 15, 1980
Height: 192cm
Weight: 82kg
Team: Etixx-QuickStep
Now in the twilight of his glittering career, Tom Boonen is one of the most successful riders of his generation.
Three Tour of Flanders titles and four in Paris-Roubaix (opens in new tab), one more in either race would place the Belgian as the greatest cobbled Classics rider in history, surpassing the likes of Roger de Vlaeminck, Johan Museeuw and his contemporary, Fabian Cancellara.
Not only has Tornado Tom shined on the harsh roads of northern France and Flanders, but he sits on a palmarès that boasts a World Championship road race crown in 2005 as well as six Tour de France stage wins and a green jersey in 2007.
While his future last year seemed uncertain, Boonen extended his stay at home team Etixx-QuickStep by a year to the end of 2016, and has now ridden with the squad in its various incarnations since 2003.
Crashes in Paris-Nice and the Abu Dhabi Tour left a sour mark on the 35-year-old's 2015 season, with Boonen certain to be looking to score one last big win in Flanders or Roubaix before he calls it a day.
Latest
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Tom Boonen says his comeback was ‘concrete,’ but has now been abandoned due to coronavirus
Tom Boonen has said his plans for a comeback were “concrete,” but have since been abandoned due to coronavirus.
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Tom Boonen admits he often considers making a professional comeback
Tom Boonen says that a return to the professional peloton is "an option."
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Tom Boonen narrowly escapes injury after high-speed racing car crash
'The car literally landed 10cm from my head' said Boonen
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Tom Boonen backs Geraint Thomas to defend Tour de France title
Boonen says the strength of Ineos means Thomas won't suffer as much in the final week, which could prove crucial
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Tom Boonen says 'there's magic in Deceuninck - Quick–Step' as team dominates one-day races
Deceuninck - Quick-Step contains a bit of magic that the other top Classics teams lack, says retired Classics star Tom Boonen.
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Classics legend Tom Boonen could be dropped from Lotto-Soudal as advisor
Classics hardman Tom Boonen could be dropped from his advisor role at Lotto-Soudal.
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Tom Boonen: 'Remco Evenepoel needs to learn to ride tactically at WorldTour level'
Tom Boonen has applauded rising Belgian star Remco Evenepoel for his world titles in Innsbruck this week, but says the junior cyclist "needs to learn to ride tactically at WorldTour level."
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Peter Sagan should stop complaining about other teams, says Tom Boonen
The Classics legend says Sagan should not complain about other teams refusing to cooperate with him, saying "he is the one who always starts to sit on"
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Lotto-Soudal recruit Tom Boonen as advisor for 2018 season
Tom Boonen will join Lotto-Soudal as a "technological advisor" for the 2018 season after investing in its Captains of Cycling programme.
