Sunday, 12 April: 7.15am. Woke up and jumped out of bed. This was the day I had been looking forward to for the last 12 months. I looked out the window and in complete contrast to last year it was raining and the clouds were a dark grey. But hey, this day was always going to be hard, this was just another obstacle in the process of things . Breakfast. Two bowls of cereal, half a baguette and a big bowl of pasta with olive oil. Not my preferred breakfast but probably the best for a day in Hell. After breakfast the masseurs came in with big pads which we stick on our hips for protection if we fall.

Depart the hotel at 9.30 with three layers of clothing and a communication system wired up; all my food in my pockets; oil on my legs and extremely nervous -- which is something which rarely affects me. I rode the three kilometres to the start on the front with Fred Moncassin, who was also surprisingly nervous. That made me feel better. Sign on 15 minutes before the start was incredible. The hype surrounding this race is pumping me up, the television crews are all around, photographers are scrambling for photos, people are coming up to me before the start and saying - you can do it man! You can win this!. I'm trying to stay calm but the attention was overwhelming. I sat in the car and tried to get away from the public, I hear the one-minute whistle and make my way to the start, the gun goes and we roll off the 100metres of cobbles at the startline. I make the sign of the cross to myself, and grab my gold cross which my mother gave me two years ago as good-luck birthday present and quickly think of her.

We're off. As usual there were lots of attacks at the beginning. Our team workers today, Arnaud Pretot, Cyril Bos and Eddy Seigneur, were going with all the moves. Personally, I felt like shit for the first 80 or 90 kms. The first break was after 50 kms with Arnaud Pretot sitting nicely in the move.

We hit the first cobbled sector at warp speed. Everyone wanted to be in the first 10. The first sector was dry and there weren't any crashes that I saw, but the peloton was already breaking to bits. The sun was still shining at this time and I was thinking that it may be a warm dry day. Ha, was I wrong!

The very next sector was wet and muddy. Fred went down, but was back up in flash and straight back into 5th wheel in two hundred metres. On this particular sector three Gan riders, Fred, Stuart and I, lead the bunch. Things are looking good now the sectors are coming in quick succession, and the field is getting tired.

There isn't as much urgency to be in the front on the sectors because guys are getting tired... already. (One thing which stuck in my head from last year was to always be in front at the start of a pave section.) The bunch is tired but still together. My first crash was ridiculous; it was on the smooth bitumen road, my team-mate Cyril Bos, hit a groove in the road and brought me down as well. Nothing major but a two kilometre chase at 55kph pissed me off. I got back on and received word -- via my personal radio -- that the Arenberg Forest is the next sector. Festina are on the front riding with Telekom so the speed is lifting all the time.

The last kilometre before Arenberg is absolute Kamikazee-style: slings, headbutts, hooks and all at about 60-65kph. Eros Poli does an excellent job of getting me to about 10th. I hit Arenberg on the right side and smash down the outside doing two to everybody else's one, I look around and have a 100 metre gap. I can't believe how quickly I have gapped everybody. Arenberg is absolutely one of the most shocking sectors to ride over. I'm having a real struggle to keep my bike in a straight line. Back wheel slide; then front wheel slide. My Rock Shox are working overtime, then Fred comes flying passed me and gaps me by 50 metres. The people on this sector are absolutely ridiculous. There is only about a metre to get through. I¹m screaming at them to get out of my way. Fred and I are away and we ride but not 100 per cent, we make it on to the next sector still away. One Mapei rider, Wilfried Peeters, comes across then a group of about 15 riders but no one wants to ride. Eros Poli is also there and he is forcing the pace, seeing Fred and I are sitting in the group. I look around and see the peloton, or what was left of it, completely split to pieces into about 10 groups. Eros is still riding up front and he drives over the next sector -- which was pretty bad -- at 100 per cent.

Another group comes over, with Ballerini and Tafi and Magnuss Backstedt and Stuart O'Grady. The peloton is now about 35, I haven't seen Musseuw or Ballerini and I see five Gan and four Mapeis. Things are looking good for us. We hit the next sector and I look up and see Magnuss driving on the front, he was hurting some legs... Guys were dropping off the back like flys. We were definitely going full-speed, there were guys crashing in the mud and I managed to stay near the front. Still 16 sectors to go. Magnuss is still driving on the front with Eros and the Mapeis. I wonder where Musseuw is? (ed: Museeuw crashed badly in the Arenberg and broke his leg). Sector after sector our 35 riders are just dwindling down we now have about 20-23 riders left. Now the sectors are really muddy and it¹s starting to hail and sting my face. The muddy sectors are full off puddles, my Oakleys are covered in mud and my jersey from the front is just about indistinguishable. The attacks are starting to fly and we are in everything. At every sector the group is splitting and reforming afterward. I¹m still feeling good and am trying to conserve my energy.

Then the decisive move of the whole race. An attack from Peeters which Tafi, Magnuss and Fred go with. Stuey and I are obligated to sit on and block; bad move because that was it -- THE break!

We hit the second feed zone and this little group accelerates away from us. I was out of there; I wasn¹t waiting around for anyone. I attacked from the second group and found myself with Stuart O'Grady 10 seconds from two Mapeis two Gan and two Rabobank riders about 100metres ahead. We were riding balls-out and was so close to getting on, then the Rabobank car moved in front of us on the next sector. We couldn¹t get around the car but still, we tried. IMPOSSIBLE! We both crashed and that was it, I nearly landed in the front seat of the car and Stuart went into the spectators, consequently the two Rabo riders went on to get on to the bunch.

Ballerini had already ridden off and was putting time into everyone. Stuey and I were caught by the chasing 10 riders with Gianluca Bortolami, Peter van Petegem, Tristan Hoffman, Dario Pieri, Christophe Capelle and Bart Leysen and a couple of others. We sat 30 seconds behind the group of Tafi and Moncassin for 50km. At 30km to go on a bad section Tristan Hoffman crashed right in front of me and wiped me out, I did a somersault and landed on my face dazed. I jumped back on my bike and chased for at least 10km. I was on the rivet, and was starting to fade badly. Bortolami and Van Petegem were driving -- just holding the front group at 25-30 seconds, by that time Ballerini was well on his way to winning, 4 sectors to go and Bortolami attacks and blows everyone away except Bart Leysen (from Mapei) and me.

He is absolutely driving and I¹m hanging on his wheel not even doing a turn and he's catching the group. We are about 250 metres from the group with my team-mates so I'm not riding, I'm not going to drag this animal up to the group to beat my team leader, Fred.

Finally we hit the second last sector and Bortolami blows and we lose a minute to the finish, I'm just happy to be there at that stage and I try my best to win the sprint for 8th but I'm dead after 268km and am happy to finish top 10. I stop on the side of the track and just lean hunched over my bike for a few minutes thinking that was the hardest race I've ever done in my life...

Then camera crews and mad photographers jostle to get shots of me splattered with mud. I just want to lay down and die because I hear we didn¹t just get beaten: Mapei 1,2 and 3 -- we got kicked by the strongest team in the world,5th 7th 10th and 20th we were, so it was good day for team Gan, but I¹m not really content with our result.

Seeing the Mapeis on the podium stung pretty bad, but I know that my time will come in this race. I try to think positive, two times 10th in two years, Ballerini was 32 when he won his first Roubaix and I know I can still get stronger. I¹m 24 and probably have lots more to learn before I throw my hands in the air. I've had a good day. Stuart and I drive to my friend's place in Belgium with extremely sore legs and then indulge in a few Belgian beers which, I might add, did numb the pain and put me to sleep quite nicely.

Now it's rest for a few days and then Liege on the weekend...