Second last year in dramatic fashion, Vanmarcke could only watch helplessly as Fabian Cancellara out-thought him tactically and flew past him to win the sprint for the line in the famed Roabaix Velodrome. But the result has proved to be a shot in the arm for Vanmarcke who has followed it with a consistent showing on the cobbles this season. Five top-five finishes, including a podium place at the Ronde have marked the 25-year-old Belgian as a serious Classics contender.

His defeat last year hurt him and you can guarantee if it comes to a sprint again he will do all he can to not be stung in the same manner again. If he needed a reminder of Cancellara’s prowess in the sprint, he need only look back a week, having been out thought and outsprinted by again in Ronde denoument.

A strong support team includes Lars Boom, Maarten Wynants and Robert Wagner, though Vanmarcke has proved so far this season he is more than capable of keeping tabs on the WorldTour’s best with or without his team-mates. A cobbled Classic certainly does not look beyond Vanmarcke, and there is no reason to suggest it won’t be this one which breaks his WorldTour duck.