Pogacar, a cannibal with an endless appetite who also knows how to smile

After two consecutive seasons, 2023 and 2022, where the Dane Jonas Vingegaard removed his glory from Tour de France, Tadej Pogacar He decides to make some changes in his immediate environment and in his career program to reclaim a territory he considers his own. He has chosen with operational precision the races in which he will participate – this year he has competed in 53 days so far and, apart from Milan-Sanremo where he finished 3rd, he won clearly in all the events in which he participated – and changed coaches last winter to improve the aspects where in theory he was weaker, where his great rival, Vingegaardis better: the long climb to high altitude and the heat, two of the agents that had a significant presence in 111th edition of the Tour de France. He intensified the training hours and decided to introduce the Italy is spinning for the first time in his career program.

When he did this and when he announced his willingness to compete in the Tour as well, some put their hands on their heads. Only seven cyclists achieved the Giro-Tour double at the same time and no one since Marco Pantani in 1998. 26 years later Pogacar Not only did he win the Giro, but he swept six victories and overall. “No, Pogacar will not accuse the Giro of the Tour, he is number 1, the best cyclist in the world,” he told MD. UAE Team Emirates sporting director Joxean Fernández ‘Matxin’. And he was right, hurt in self-esteem after losing the last two Tours, Pogacar He also swept the Tour, maintaining a great rivalry with his greatest rival, Vingegaard, who always emphasized that he “pushed me to improve.”

In his fifth Tour de France, Pogacar – whose father is also a cyclist, like his girlfriend, Urska Zigart, who always accompanied him to races if he could, and when he began to excel his son stood out in his ability to remain cool and calm in any situation, he joined the UAE Team Emirates on the advice of Andrej Hauptmann, a former Slovenian professional and Tadej’s team manager when he made his first pedal strokes – bordered on perfection. He won six stages, the same as the Giro, and came second in two others. In 21 days he has not worn yellow in two. At 25 years old he has already won 17 stages in the Tour, better than Eddy Merckx at his same age, also surpassed the Belgian cannibal as the runner who has led a grand tour on the most days (39). He is the first cyclist in history to win at least five times in the Giro and the Tour in the same year. He is in the top 10 for the most stage wins (17) in the Tour;

Win, win and win

And he never gets tired of winning. It is insatiable. Dominate all lands. He reads all race situations better than anyone else – “he thrives in the test of time, in his ability to convince himself, when he attacks he knows that his rivals will suffer and this conviction gives him a security that he will not realize until he has proven it has”. Matxin told MD – and whenever he could he made it clear that he was the best. “They pay me to win, why do I need to win. In this job if you don’t get results, you’re doing it wrong. You have to win as much as possible,” said Pogacar, a bit angry when they suggested to him that maybe one day he would let another cyclist win. A bravery reminiscent of the number 1 cannibal, Eddy Merckx, who when asked the reason for his endless appetite always replied that “presents are at Christmas and with the family.”

But, despite the desire to win, Pogacar honors cycling with his professionalism, his way of running, his always offensive cycling, no matter what race he runs, to the delight of the fans who always praise the brave and epic . A hegemony – he is having his best year as a professional – that he also exercises with a childlike face that has not disappeared at the age of 25, with a frightening naturalness and always with a smile on his face. What else do you want?