Paris - Belgium's Tom Boonen has pulled out of this weekend's Milan-San Remo classic after his partner had a miscarriage, his Omega Pharma team confirmed on Wednesday.
"In such a sensitive moment Tom prefers to stay by his partner's side", Omega Pharma said in a statement.
Boonen, 33, is a classics expert having won the Paris-Roubaix four times and the Tour of Flanders three times, but he has never won in San Remo, coming second in 2010 and third in 2007.