The Tour of Flanders, or the Ronde Van Vlaaderen as it is known in Belgium, includes 16 nasty climbs, sections of pave, wind and totally unpredictable weather. They are the perfect ingredients for one of cycling's true great races, one of the so-called five monuments of the sport.

It is a hard race for real men and Team Barloworld will be in the thick of the action on Sunday. The riders know they need to ride aggressively, with clear tactics and intelligence and are ready to perform.
 
Barloworld are already in Belgium after riding the Three Days of De Panne, the key warm-up race for Sunday's Tour of Flanders.

Valerio Tebaldi will be in the red team car and team manager Claudio Corti has selected Robert Hunter, Daryl Impey, Steve Cummings, Patrick Calcagni, Diego Caccia and Carlo Scognamiglio.

Unfortunately Michele Merlo will not be able to ride after hurting his right shoulder in a crash during De Panne.
 
Hunter will lead the team and always performs well in Belgium and on the pave. He will have excellent support from Cummings, who has the 'engine' to perform well in a major classics like the Tour of Flanders.
 
Huge crowds are expected to line the route, especially on the key Kluisberg and Bosberg climbs.