Lars Boom to Win Paris-Roubaix

From the moment Kristoff crossed the line at the end of last weekend's Ronde van Vlaanderern, predictions for tomorrow's Paris-Roubaix began to roll across the cobbles and bergs, through the little towns and the dark forests. If there is anything I have learned by following the sport over the decades it is best not to predict a winner of l'enfer du nord, the Hell of the North. It, more than any other, is a race that defies prediction; a single split-second of inattention, the all-to-freqent slip of a wheel, the inevitable puncture, or any one of a hundred other un-calculated mishaps will foil the plans of the strongest of riders. In the end, it is the course more than any other factor, more than pre-race preparation, more than technology, more than EPO, that will determine the outcome, choose the day's champion.

What the hell, though, there's no fun in that at all. Therefore, there is one person above all others, whose career as led directly to this moment, whose race in Flanders was forceful and determined, who is built from the mold of 'classic hard-man' - I guarantee that the cobbles and mal-weather of Paris-Roubaix will select Lars Boom as its champion for 2015. I just hope this does not put too much pressure on his shoulders.

photo from the leTour website