Reports in the Belgian media have confirmed that Tom Boonen will not be competing in this weekend's Amstel Gold Race. The Omega Pharma-QuickStep rider has swept all before him on the cobbles in recent weeks, scoring victories at E3 Harelbeke, Gent-Wevelgem, the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.
After his win at Paris-Roubaix on Sunday, Boonen suggested that he might line up at Amstel Gold for what would have been his debut in the prestigious Ardennes Classic. But now it appears that the exertions of the last few weeks, which catapulted him into the history books, have taken their toll.
It is thought that Boonen will now take a mid-season break before possibly returning to the road in the Amgen Tour of California on 13 May.
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