Edvald Boasson Hagen has been forced to pull out of the Tour of Flanders on Sunday due to an Achilles injury.

The Norwegian has not been able to shrug off the tendonitis that has caused him problems since Milan-San Remo and it has now been decided by the medical team and the senior management of Team Sky that he is to skip this year's event in order to recover and focus fully on Paris-Roubaix.

Senior sports director Scott Sunderland said: "We're making a prudent decision regarding Edvald's injury and by way of a precautionary measure. This is definitely the right thing to do.

"He is on the right road to recovery, but since he still has some problems with his Achilles, we're not taking any risks.

"By doing so, he'll still be able to train progressively on Paris-Roubaix and hopefully be able to make his mark there."

Boasson Hagen battling back

Boasson Hagen was disappointed not to be taking his place at the start line on Sunday but is sure the decision will benefit him in the long term.

"I'm sad to miss out on the Tour of Flanders as I have been looking forward to this race for a long time," he said.

"I still haven't got completely rid of my tendonitis though, so I need to save myself a little so I can still be competitive in Paris-Roubaix.

"This is clearly not what I had hoped for, but I'm very hopeful that I have a good chance of getting ready for Paris-Roubaix and that race is still a very big goal for me."

Boasson Hagen will be replaced by Greg Henderson in this weekend's Flemish classic.