Boonen plans his schedule

Tom Boonen has planned his racing calendar up to the Spring Classics, starting with a Team Quick.Step-Innergetic training camp in Italian's Tuscany region from December 13 to 19.

The dates of the Italian training camp mean that he will miss the announcement of the Belgian Athlete of the Year award, but he told Sportwereld.be that "I will speak with the team again as to whether I could attend. That is the most beautiful award that you can win in Belgium."

The team will gather again in Spain in January, and Boonen will open his season in the Tour of Qatar (January 27 - February 1), to be followed by the Tour of California (February 17 - 24). He hopes to be over his jet lag for the Omloop Het Volk (March 1). "That will be close. There are only five or six days between California and Het Volk," he told the Gazet van Antwerpen, "but I will still try to start the Omloop. Kuurne, Paris-Nice and all the Spring Classics: all that remains the same."