Podium l-r) Maarten Wynants (Bel) / Sean De Bie (Bel) / Pieter Van Speybrouck (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Julien Vermote (Bel) running through the sand(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Nikolas Maes (Bel) running through the sand(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Floris De Tier (Bel) and David Boucher (Bel) try and avoid one another in the sand pit(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Andre Greipel (Ger) in the sand pit(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marcel Kittel racing at Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 charity cyclo-cross race(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 - Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) and Tom Boonen (Bel) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Geert Wellens (Bel) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marcel Kittel (Ger) and Marcel Sieberg (Ger) go head-to-head through the sand pit(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marcel Kittel looks like he's having a great time racing cyclo-cross(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Pieter Van Speybrouck (Bel) in the sand pit(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Maarten Wynants (Bel) negotiates the sand pit(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie makes riding in the sand look easy(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
James Van Landschoot (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tiesj Benoot (Bel) looks like he's enjoying himself(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Niki Terpstra (Ned)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Davide Bramati (Ita), Marc Patry (Bel) and Dirk Clarysse (Bel) take part in Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Cze)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Nikolas Maes (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Andre Greipel (Ger)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Maarten Wynants (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marcel Kittel (Ger) joins Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marcel Sieberg (Ger)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Cze)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
ves Lampaert (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Nikolas Maes (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Cze)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Yves Lampaert (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marcel Kittel (Ger)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marcel Kittel joins Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 with Guillaume Van Keirsbulck (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 with Stijn Vandenbergh(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 with Yves Lampaert (Bel) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 with Niki Terpstra (Ned)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 with Andre Greipel (Ger)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Stijn Vandenbergh (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Jens Keukeleire (Bel) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Niki Terpstra (Ned)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
David Boucher (Fra)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Andre Greipel (Ger)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel) wins Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Lukasz Wisniowski (Pol)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Boonen and Friends 2015 podium (l-r): Maarten Wynants (Bel) / Sean De Bie (Bel) / Pieter Van Speybrouck (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel) wins Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel) takes the win(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel) wins Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel) victory salute at Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel) on his way to winning Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Maarten Wynants (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Cze)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Maarten Wynants (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Andre Greipel (Ger) at the start of Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tom Boonen (Bel) and Maarten Wynants (Bel) at the start of Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Nicolas Maes (Bel) with Tom Boonen (Bel) at Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tom Boonen (Bel) with Tiesj Benoot (Bel) at Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tom Boonen at Boonen and Friends 2015(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) and Lukasz Wisniowski (Pol)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Cze) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Cze)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sean De Bie (Bel)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Etixx-QuickStep's Tom Boonen did not start his sixth annual charity event Boonen and Friends 2015 but there was a star-studded group that joined in the day's cyclo-cross race held at the Zilvermeer in Mol, Belgium. In the end, it was Sean De Bie (Lotto Soudal) who took the win ahead of Maarten Wynants (LottoNL-Jumbo) and Pieter Van Speybrouck (Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise).
They day's event included some 50 professional riders including Boonen's Etixx-QuickStep teammates; Michal Kwiatkowski, Nikki Terpstra, Stijn Vandenbergh and Zdenek Stybar. Other big names were Marcel Kittel (Giant-Alpecin), Andre Greipel, Jurgen Van den Broeck and Tiesj Benoot (Lotto Soudal), to name a few.
Boonen is still recovering from a head injury, temporal bone fracture, sustained in a crash at the Abu Dhabi Tour in October. He is confident that he will recover in time for the Spring Classics.
