Pliuschin and Wynants have 20km to go. Katusha now has a reason not to contribute to the pace setting even though Robbie McEwen is a proven winner on the streets of Brussels (having won the Paris-Brussels one-day Classic four times). The leading pair is 55" ahead of the bunch.
Lampre and Katusha are also sending troops forward. But the real pace setting duties have been done by Johan Vansummeren of the Garmin team for the last few kilometers.
17:10 - Milram Send Some Forward
There are now a few Milram riders also getting in on the action at the front of the bunch which is 55" behind Pliuschin and Wynants. The German team’s sprinter is Gerald Ciolek, the former under-23 world champion.