Races Road Boonen wins 2012 Tour of Flanders By Brecht Decaluwé published 1 April 2012 Glory on the cobbles for Omega Pharma-QuickStep rider Comments Race Home Race history Start list Image 1 of 166Pozzato, Boonen and Ballan on the podium(Image credit: Bettini Photo)Tom Boonen, Sylvain Chavanel, Niki Terpstra, and Filippo Pozzato(Image credit: Photopress.be)Daniel Oss (Liquigas - Cannondale) drives it out on the Oude Kwaremont(Image credit: Photopress.be)A view of the Patersberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)A unique bike and outfit for this Ronde van Vlaanderen fan(Image credit: Photopress.be)Dries Devenijns (Omega Pharma - QuickStep)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Heinrich Haussler (Garmin-Barracuda) leads Jens Keukeleire (GreenEdge) over the cobbles(Image credit: Photopress.be)Eventual race winner Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma - QuickStep) on the Eikenberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack - Nissan) on the Eikenberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)Leif Hoste (Accent Jobs - Willems Veranda's) on the Eikenberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma - QuickStep) and Peter Sagan (Liquigas - Cannondale)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Sep Vanmarcke (Garmin - Barracuda) ahead of Alessandro Ballan (BMC)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Thomas Voeckler (Europcar) had a dig within the final 20kms(Image credit: Photopress.be)Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma - QuickStep), Filippo Pozzato (Farnese Vini - Selle Italia) and Peter Sagan (Liquigas - Cannondale)(Image credit: Photopress.be)A slight hold up for the Lotto - Belisol team car(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Sylvain Chavanel (Omega Pharma - QuickStep) and Filippo Pozzato (Farnese Vini - Selle Italia) keep an eye on each other(Image credit: Photopress.be)No escaping the Flandrian flags(Image credit: Photopress.be)Edvald Boasson Hagen on the Patersberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)Peter Sagan (Liquigas - Cannondale) on the Patersberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)Boonen gets by with a little help from his friend(Image credit: Photopress.be)Flares provided an extra hazard for the peloton to avoid(Image credit: Photopress.be)Philippe Gilbert on the Oude Kwaremont(Image credit: Photopress.be)Stijn Vandenbergh (Omega Pharma - QuickStep) on the Patersberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)Stuart O'Grady (GreenEdge) on the Eikenberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Tom Boonen at the start in Bruges(Image credit: Photopress.be)Philippe Gilbert (BMC) on the Patersberg(Image credit: Photopress.be)No caption necessary(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Waiting for the break of the day(Image credit: Photopress.be)Peter Sagan (Liquigas - Cannondale) makes a solo bid to catch the leaders(Image credit: Photopress.be)Stijn Vandenbergh (Omega Pharma - QuickStep)(Image credit: Photopress.be)The peloton works its way through the Belgian fields(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Filippo Pozzato (Farnese Vini - Selle Italia), and Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma - QuickStep)(Image credit: Photopress.be)George Hincapie (BMC) on the Oude Kwaremont(Image credit: Photopress.be)And then there were three...(Image credit: Photopress.be)The peloton works its way through the Belgian fields(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)There was an element missing in the 2012 race for some(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Wouter Vandenhoutte, Eddy Merckx and Patrick Lefevere watch the action on television(Image credit: Photopress.be)Fans by the roadside(Image credit: Photopress.be)A fan on the Kwaremont kisses a pieve of the famed Muur(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Wouter Vandenhoutte, Eddy Merckx and Patrick Lefevere watch the action on television(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Some Boonen fans(Image credit: Photopress.be)Fans by the roadside(Image credit: Photopress.be)Bier time!(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)What's Belgian cycling without Belgian beer?(Image credit: Photopress.be)Stefanie Clerckx, Eddy Merckx and Zdenek Bakala(Image credit: Photopress.be)Boonen in action during his 2012 Tour of Flanders win(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma - QuickStep) grits his teeth(Image credit: Photopress.be)A focused Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Belgian fans celebrate Tom Boonen's victory(Image credit: Photopress.be)Belgian fans celebrate Tom Boonen's victory(Image credit: Photopress.be)Belgian fans celebrate Tom Boonen's victory(Image credit: Photopress.be)Third place-getter, Alessandro Ballan (BMC)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Nikki Terpstra feels the pain during a tough Flanders(Image credit: Photopress.be)No prizes for guessing who these guys were going for(Image credit: Photopress.be)Philippe Gilbert on the Kwaremont(Image credit: Photopress.be)Belgian fans celebrate Tom Boonen's victory(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)(Image credit: Photopress.be)Omega Pharma - QuickStep celebrate Tom Boonen's third Tour of Flanders win(Image credit: Photopress.be)Race fans waiting at the finish(Image credit: Photopress.be)Wouter Vandenhoutte, Eddy Merckx and Patrick Lefevere watch the action on television(Image credit: Photopress.be)Wouter Vandenhoutte, Eddy Merckx and Patrick Lefevere watch the action on television(Image credit: Photopress.be)