It has been a very difficult time for Tom Boonen as the Belgian classics specialist experienced a personal tragedy and a painful injury just ahead of the season’s first major objective, Ronde van Vlaanderen coming this Sunday. Despite those unfavorable circumstances transforming last weeks into one of the worst possible lead-ups to the season’s second monument, the Omega Pharma-Quick Step rider has showed enough self composure to move on and remain focused on his main targets as professional cyclist.

“These are the most important weeks of the year for him, so he has no choice but to race,” Omega Pharma-QuickStep general manager Patrick Lefevere told Cycling Weekly.

“He will not put [the miscarriage] behind, but what can he do? Stay at home? That’s not an option.”

Always kind and easily approachable for journalists, on his return to racing in the Dwars door Vlaanderen the 33-year old Belgian confessed that on the personal ground, he has experienced one of the most terrible weeks in his life and there was no other option than withdrawing from Milano-Sanremo in those circumstances.

“Lore and I have had a very difficult week, a terrible week actually,” Boonen said at the start in Dwars. “You never really forget something like this.”

In fact, after La Primavera route has been altered with a removal of the Pompeiana climb, Boonen was expected to co-captain the Omega Pharma-Quick Step’s formidable roster alongside Mark Cavendish. However, those plans never came into fruition as Boonen’s partner miscarried their firth child in the middle of the week ahead of season’s first monument and classics specialist was forced to focus on his private life.

“I couldn’t have cared less about cycling. I had something else on my mind,” Boonen said. “On Tuesday, the gynaecologist told us that child was dead inside her belly. On Thursday, she had to go to the hospital for labour. It was a very difficult delivery, which took 25 hours.”

Even though Boonen lived up to team’s expectations and proved his professionalism by concentrating on cycling again right after he and his partner returned from the hospital, the 33-year old Belgian admitted that the tragedy they have experienced is nothing to be put behind that quickly.

“At a certain point, I really didn’t care anymore,” he said. “I have worked too much in preparation of these races to just go and sit in a corner. Nevertheless… you never really forget something like this.”

The sports director of the Belgian outfit, Wilfried Peeters, tried to look on positive sides of Boonen’s withdrawal from Milano-Sanremo, claiming that the classics specialist very likely avoided an illness which struck many riders participating in the event played in unfavorable weather conditions.

“Maybe it was better he missed San Remo given the weather. In fact, many guys were sick afterwards,” one of the team’s sports directors, Wilfried Peeters told Cycling Weekly.

“However, his mental state is going to be very important after this bad week at home. At least now he can take his mind off of it as he focuses on the races.”

While tough racing on cobbles can serve Boonen as a breather in regards to his personal problems, the more physical kind of pain will still remain after the Belgian injured his right thumb in E3 Harelbeke on Friday. However, the Omega Pharma-Quick Step manager is convinced that it shouldn’t be a factor anymore when he lines up in the Ronde van Vlaanderen on Sunday.

“Maybe he feels it but Sunday is four or five days away,” Lefevere said. “What got me, though, was that he was disappointed to lose the sprint. That shows that he has a good attitude and has his mind on racing ahead of Flanders.”