Flandrien: Hard Men and Heroes 

Eddy Merckx. Stephan Vanfleteren / Panos Pictures

Stephan VanFleteren's exhibition on cycling in Flanders

As London gears up to host the Tour de France, a new photography exhibition pays tribute to the Flandrien - a
generation of Flemish cyclists who make the athletes of the Tour de France look like amateur enthusiasts.

Tough, determined, unsophisticated riders, the Flandrien are the heroes of the Tour of Flanders and the Paris-Roubaix, races which specialise in some of the worst roads
and weather conditions imaginable in bicycle racing.

Stephan Vanfleteren's powerful black and white photographs provide an intimate and emotional portrait of these legendary sportsmen and the sport which dominates the social and cultural life of Flanders, the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium.

Stephan Vanfleteren, represented by the Panos Pictures agency, has been photographing the Flandrien for more than 15 years.

http://www.hostgallery.co.uk