Peter Van Petegem (Davitamon-Lotto) is ready for the Hell of the North, the race that he won in 2003. After finishing fourth in the Ronde van Vlaanderen, Van Petegem showed that he has the legs to be in the finale. "The legs feel reasonably good," he told Sporza radio. "I did some hard training last Wednesday and by Sunday things have to be perfect. Last Sunday was good for me. Ok, winning is different of course, yeah. The last weeks I had a lot of criticism addressed to me; but I knew I was on the right track, I proved that. For Sunday that is positive.
"I've recovered well from last Sunday. . I don't have to take revenge. I'm riding for myself. I proved last weekend I'm fit and able to ride the finale. Sunday, I'm riding Paris-Roubaix, a new race, a new chance, it's not all that bad.
"Tactically it is important to have the least possible of bad luck and then make sure you're at the front. The strongest one always wins in Paris-Roubaix. It can be very easy at times, but it's very hard. If I win on Sunday it will be a beautiful day, if I don't win but I rode well, well yes, my career is partly made already, it's not like I have to prove much anymore. I'll take what I can get.
Even if he doesn't win, Van Petegem won't consider his season a failure: "The season is only four months far, there's another five to go. There's a lot of riders who say they want to win Paris-Roubaix the eve before, or be top five... It's not because you don't win any races that you're not doing well."
When asked about his main rival, Tom Boonen, and possible race outcomes, Van Petegem told HLN, "It would indeed be nice to enter the velodrome with Boonen, because that would mean that you'll at the worst finish second. So yes, it would be OK to sprint on the track with Boonen, it's different than a normal sprint. But I'd rather arrive at the track without Boonen; in case he is there still, well we'll make the best of it.
"Bert Roesems has been performing well for a few weeks now but we have a whole team with important riders; guys who put me out of the wind, give me a wheel when I need it. I insisted on having Bert Roesems in the Ronde, we saw last Sunday he's riding strong. Bert's a guy who can time-trial; in case there's a gap to be closed after a puncture, he's an important man.
The change of the parcours isn't major and Peter Van Petegem thinks it won't make a difference: "Paris-Roubaix is always hard; there's still 25 sections of cobbles, one more or less. It's the strong men who remain in the end and who make the race.
A new bike? "It's tradition that almost everyone has a new bike; a bit longer to have more stability on the cobbles. Especially in the bad weather; it's important to stay upright.
"Scheldeprijs and Amstel Gold race are the only two races after this weekend. Then, like everyone else, I will have a small rest period. I'm not planning to stop racing yet!"
Peter Van Petegem will have the following riders by his side on Sunday: Nico Mattan, Leon Van Bon, Henk Vogels, Tom Steels, Wim Vansevenant, Gert Steegmans and Bert Roesems.
