Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

[Krzysztof_O]

Oh god no... Roglic looks super in that, but where can I apply to become Tadej's personal shopper? He needs me!! (Or anyone else.)

Primoz is already counting calories before next year's TdF. He hasn't eaten a solid meal since that hamburger during his honeymoon.
OTOH Tadej is strategically growing fat: he'll need it during some cold Alpine stage to crush the frozen field to pieces.

 

[CyclistAbi]

Congratulations on winning the Slovenian sportsman of the year awards.

Pogačar mother is a french teacher. At home she was always just a mom hence Pogačar is rather bad at speaking french. In his defense he is rather good at riding a bicycle in France.

P.S. Slovenian sportswoman of the year award went to Janja Garnbret.

 

[Red Rick]

The funny thing about it is if both Pogačar and Garnbret would get Laureus. You really couldn't argue all that much as that being unfair. Especially Garnbret. Achieving everything there is to achieve in competitive climbing by the age of 22. And already to be considered to be the GOAT. It's just hard to top that.

Problem is Laureus awards heavily favor certain sports. For it heavily favors tennis players, and for the men, Formula 1 as well. They just seem to occasionally nominate the TdF winner for the main award, but preferably just for the breakthrough award.

Basically I think Max Verstappen will get it. I think Djokovic would've been a shoe-in if he had won the USO but now I don't think so. I think Pogacar literally deserves it more than either but he won't get it cause Laureus isn't an award where people know races exist outside of the Tour.

Women's award I guess rock climbing isn't big enough of a sport. Seems to be an athletics/tennis fest with Simone Biles thrown in there

 

[Unterlenkerfahrend]

Congratulations on winning the Slovenian sportsman of the year awards.

Pogačar mother is a french teacher. At home she was always just a mom hence Pogačar is rather bad at speaking french. In his defense he is rather good at riding a bicycle in France.

P.S. Slovenian sportswoman of the year award went to Janja Garnbret.

A cyclist and a climber. If you merge their bodies you'd get the perfect human athlete. Climbers have famously chicken legs but amazing upper bodies while for cyclists it's the reverse.
Despite Pogacars crazy palmares at his age, Garnbret even edges him, she's really an enigma. Has dominated the scene for half a decade but still only 22 years old.

As for the Laureus award, sports climbing is just too small I guess. And I wouldn't put Pogacars chances too high as well, their award history is really weird and the criteria appear quite random. I mean, Federer has won it 5 times, I like him but that's just obscene.

 

[CyclistAbi]

As for having schedule UAE Tour, Tour of Slovenia , 4 monuments, Tour-Vuelta double, WC ... Lets see how that goes but for me it does read as being a bit excessive.

Problem is Laureus awards heavily favor certain sports. For it heavily favors tennis players, and for the men, Formula 1 as well. They just seem to occasionally nominate the TdF winner for the main award, but preferably just for the breakthrough award.

Basically I think Max Verstappen will get it. I think Djokovic would've been a shoe-in if he had won the USO but now I don't think so. I think Pogacar literally deserves it more than either but he won't get it cause Laureus isn't an award where people know races exist outside of the Tour.

Women's award I guess rock climbing isn't big enough of a sport. Seems to be an athletics/tennis fest with Simone Biles thrown in there

I agree that Laureus award is heavily biased toward certain sports. In a way that is a shame really. Could have had much higher prestigious value if there would not be such bias.

A cyclist and a climber. If you merge their bodies you'd get the perfect human athlete. Climbers have famously chicken legs but amazing upper bodies while for cyclists it's the reverse.
Despite Pogacars crazy palmares at his age, Garnbret even edges him, she's really an enigma. Has dominated the scene for half a decade but still only 22 years old.

As for the Laureus award, sports climbing is just too small I guess. And I wouldn't put Pogacars chances too high as well, their award history is really weird and the criteria appear quite random. I mean, Federer has won it 5 times, I like him but that's just obscene.

I agree. Garnbret is like saying Pogačar already surpassed Eddy at age 23 as being the GOAT. That is the whole career of Eddy. Not just Eddy at this age. Or Osaka being regarded as already surpassing Williams or Verstappen ...

Basically if Laureus would get it right Garnbret would likely already have one.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Tadej Pogačar widens net to target monuments, grand tours and worlds in 2022

Not content with 'just' the Tour de France, Slovenian star outlines 2022 ambitions that also include the Vuelta a España, four monuments, and the worlds.

www.velonews.com

Four monuments + two Grand Tours? Very ambitious. Isn't it too much?

 

[Offline]

Tadej Pogačar widens net to target monuments, grand tours and worlds in 2022

Not content with 'just' the Tour de France, Slovenian star outlines 2022 ambitions that also include the Vuelta a España, four monuments, and the worlds.

www.velonews.com

Four monuments + two Grand Tours? Very ambitious. Isn't it too much?

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UAE Tour, Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico, Milano-Sanremo, Ronde van Vlaanderen, La Flèche Wallonne, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Tour of Slovenia, Tour de France, La Vuelta a España, World Championships Road Race and Il Lombardia.

Crazy program

Pro Cycling Stats say Itzulia Basque instead of Tirreno-Adriatico. But make no sense you can't ride Ronde van Vlaanderen and Itzulia Basque. Than rather Amstel Gold Race between Ronde van Vlaanderen and La Flèche Wallonne.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

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UAE Tour, Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico, Milano-Sanremo, Ronde van Vlaanderen, La Flèche Wallonne, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Tour of Slovenia, Tour de France, La Vuelta a España, World Championships Road Race and Il Lombardia.

Crazy program.

Yes. It's doable until the Tour but he'll be running on fumes at the Vuelta and afterwards.

 

[tobydawq]

Tadej Pogačar widens net to target monuments, grand tours and worlds in 2022

Not content with 'just' the Tour de France, Slovenian star outlines 2022 ambitions that also include the Vuelta a España, four monuments, and the worlds.

www.velonews.com

Four monuments + two Grand Tours? Very ambitious. Isn't it too much?

It's not like a monument is that much more difficult to ride than other one-day races.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

It's not like a monument is that much more difficult to ride than other one-day races.

The problem is to be strong in spring/autumn monuments and go for Tour+Vuelta double at the same time. The program would be more realistic without Vuelta (or with less races in the spring to be as fresh as possible for the double). I think they will adjust the program during the season and it's possible that he will skip Vuelta again.

 

[RedheadDane]

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UAE Tour, Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico, Milano-Sanremo, Ronde van Vlaanderen, La Flèche Wallonne, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Tour of Slovenia, Tour de France, La Vuelta a España, World Championships Road Race and Il Lombardia.

Crazy program

Pro Cycling Stats say Itzulia Basque instead of Tirreno-Adriatico. But make no sense you can't ride Ronde van Vlaanderen and Itzulia Basque. Than rather Amstel Gold Race between Ronde van Vlaanderen and La Flèche Wallonne.

At least they didn't put him down for two races that are literally at the same time, which is... not outside the realm of possibilities for them.
Of course, it got especially bad last year, when a bunch of riders had already announced their schedules pre lockdown, but the new schedule then meant that a bunch of those races ended up overlapping.

 

[KZD]

Is it really confirmed that he will ride Tirreno or just something like Milan-Torino between Strade and Milan San Remo? If he actually skips it he will have only around 20 racing days before the Tour even if we add a race like E3/Dwars before De Ronde and Amstel/Brabantse Pijl before the Ardennes plus Tour of Slovenia which would actually be less than average and even with the Tour, Vuelta, WC and Il Lombardia it would be aroubd 65 racing days so not that much.

The question here is more about the number of objectives rather than the number of racing days. Personally, I expect him to skip the Vuelta if he wins the Tour again which would leave him with less racing days than this year even taking ibto account something like the Tour of Britain but if he does indeed ride it then I see him skipping the WC or/and Lombardia as he will probably be too tired for those.

 

[Luthor]

He didn't say Tirreno or Itzulia, he probably won't do neither of them.

 

[Offline]

Is it really confirmed that he will ride Tirreno or just something like Milan-Torino between Strade and Milan San Remo? If he actually skips it he will have only around 20 racing days before the Tour even if we add a race like E3/Dwars before De Ronde and Amstel/Brabantse Pijl before the Ardennes plus Tour of Slovenia which would actually be less than average and even with the Tour, Vuelta, WC and Il Lombardia it would be aroubd 65 racing days so not that much.

I can't see him not doing less than at least 3 stage races before the Tour. 4-5 would be normal. 3 is minimum. 2 is crazy tbh

 

[noob]

Oh god no... Roglic looks super in that, but where can I apply to become Tadej's personal shopper? He needs me!! (Or anyone else.)

Just make it fit a tiny bit better and it would be perfect! I think he looks really cool and on trend and I am even not even remotely a Pog fan.
However Roglic; when you thought he couldn't look any better. Be still my heart!

 

[Bonimenier]

Pogacar going cyclo-cross this winter. He'll ride a cross in Ljubljana tomorrow.

 

[hayneplane]

Yes. It's doable until the Tour but he'll be running on fumes at the Vuelta and afterwards.

I really don’t see it as super arduous. Yes they are basically all high level high prestige races but before the Tour there are only 2 week long stage races and 1 four day race in the list with the rest being one dayers

 

[Red Rick]

It's not like a monument is that much more difficult to ride than other one-day races.

I think the issue would be having to be in good form for those monuments, which is where De Ronde I think fits in a bit poorly.

It's a minor issue though. If he goes to the Vuelta and is too fatigued there it would only affect his Lombardia performance.

 

[tobydawq]

I think the issue would be having to be in good form for those monuments, which is where De Ronde I think fits in a bit poorly.

It's a minor issue though. If he goes to the Vuelta and is too fatigued there it would only affect his Lombardia performance.

Yes, but this year, he won WT races in five different months, so it's not like he has a history of peaks and lows throughout his seasons.

 

[Bonimenier]

Pogacar going cyclo-cross this winter. He'll ride a cross in Ljubljana tomorrow.

And of course he won.

 

[Wvv]

And of course he won.

He wouldn't be able to finish the race in Dendermonde today tho.

 

[Salvarani]

I think it is great if he does some races in Belgium and Ronde in particular. Far too many great riders havent done them enough or at all. Valverde for example was 8th in his only participation at Ronde. Nibali has also only ridden it once and was 24th. Both legends in this sport, but a bit of a shame they didnt ride them earlier or a few times at least.

Pog already has a palmares most riders can only dream of, but he if keeps pulling off wins in the biggest races he will become a legend in is own right sooner rather than later.

I like that he wont wait until later to do these races either. Go for them while you have the chance and at your "peak". Never know how short or long your career will be. What could happen. There is more great races to win with a lot of prestige, then "just" the GTs.

 

[Axel Hangleck]

Agree - We should be encouraging more riders to do races that maybe don't suit them........

 

[Salvarani]

Agree - We should be encouraging more riders to do races that maybe don't suit them........

Never know whats for you, if you dont try. A great rider, is still a great rider. No matter what he is up against.

A race like Lombardia should be tailor-made for a rider like Valverde, but he has never won it.

Nibali won MSR from a solo-attack. A race that probably doesnt suit him the best, but he pulled it off in an incredible way. Because he is a great rider.

I mean, thats the beauty of cycling or sport in general. We love to see unexpected things happen.

 

[Red Rick]

I think part of the appeal is also there being less pressure to win, so he can ride much more freely.