Philippe Gilbert targeting his third victory at the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2012
One of the most successful cyclists of the 2011 season, Philippe Gilbert is all set to kick off his 2012 season at the Belgian classics.
Gilbert had a terrific last season and topped the 2011 UCI World Tour rankings. He secured a total number of 698 points during the previous year and overcame the Tour de France winner, Cadel Evans by a margin of 124 points.
Gilbert will be seen in action at the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad scheduled on Sunday.
He has previously won the 2006 and the 2008 versions of the race and is eyeing his third win at the Belgian classic to enter the record books.
Gilbert recalled his previous victories while talking to Sporza, "On both occasions when I won before, I was still not 100 per cent, so why should I worry, I have a good basic condition, though I have no specific training behind me".
He further added, "For me, it is important to be here in Belgium, with the national champion's jersey".
A total number of three cyclists hold the honour of winning it for a maximum number of three times, Ernest Sterckx (1952, 1953, and 1956), Joseph Bruyère (1974, 1975, and 1980) and Peter van Petegem (1997, 1998, and 2002), all Belgians.
Philippe believes that he has strong chances to join the esteemed club of his Belgian ancestors.
However, one disadvantage that he has is the fact that the Belgian has not started his 2012 campaign as yet unlike his competitors.
While talking about his main rivals, he voiced, "Boonen is very good, He will be keen to finally win here and he has a good team, [Juan Antonio] Flecha is also very strong".
One edge that the Belgian has is that his side, BMC Racing Team, spent quite a lot of time getting used to the racing conditions along with Team Vacansoleil-DCM on Thursday.
Team BMC will also be supported by Thor Hushovd, who won the race back in 2009, which makes it a hot favourite side for the event.
Thor Hushovd finished at the 35th spot with 123 points in his back pocket during the UCI World Tour Elite Men’s rankings last year.
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