The countdown continues apace, and doesnīt Tom Boonen know it. Speaking ahead of the final stage of the Tour of Oman in Muscat on Sunday, the Quick-Step Floors rider let slip that he now had 49 days left as a professional cyclist - a rare concession to the valedictory air that complements all coverage of his 2017 campaign. Then again, when the Flemish press has been very publicly ticking off the days since early in the new year, itīs not hard to keep tabs on the time from here to Paris-Roubaix on April 9. `Yeah, they remind me well in Belgium,` Boonen said in Muscat before the final stage of the Tour of Oman. `Having to talk about it every day for the rest of the 49 days is going to be a little bit crazy. But we keep in our minds that Roubaix is the last one and we just talk about the races. When we cross the finish line in Roubaix, then we can see what the result was.` Boonenīs first day at this Tour of Oman proved the most dramatic, when he crashed inside the final kilometre and missed out on the opportunity to sprint for stage victory. The Belgian showed few ill-effects in the days that followed and said that his injuries would not hinder him in the weeks ahead.ADVERTISEMENT `I had some sore spots but itīs healing well and the only time it really bothers me is at night when I sleep - or when I donīt sleep. But in the end I think a few more days of recovery will do the trick,` Boonen said. The first major appointment of Boonenīs campaign is just six days away, as he lines up for a final tilt at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, somehow the one cobbled classic missing from his weighty palmarčs. Boonen missed gilt-edged opportunities to win in Ghent in 2007, 2012 and 2015, but he has left an imprint on Belgiumīs traditional season-opener all the same. Over the years, the right-hand gutter of the Taaienberg has become something of an annual test site for Boonen, and he acknowledged that Omloop offers a firmer indication of how the spring will play out than early-season ...
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