Tadej Pogačar[a] (born 21 September 1998), nicknamed "Pogi", is a Slovenian professionalcyclist who currently rides forUCI WorldTeamUAE Team Emirates XRG.[6] His victories include fourTours de France (2020,2021,2024, and2025), the2024Giro d'Italia, and ten one-dayMonuments (Tour of Flanders twice,Liège–Bastogne–Liège three times andGiro di Lombardia five times), as well as theWorld Championship Road Race twice.[7] Comfortable in time-trialing, one-day classic riding and grand-tour climbing, he has been compared to all-round cyclists such asEddy Merckx andBernard Hinault. He is considered one of the greatest cyclists of all time.[8]
In 2024 he became only the third male cyclist, afterEddy Merckx in 1974 andStephen Roche in 1987, to achieve theTriple Crown of Cycling, winning the Giro, the Tour, and the World Championships in the same year. He is the only rider in history who took the Triple Crown and twomonuments (Liège–Bastogne–Liège andGiro di Lombardia) in the same year. In 2025, he became the first male cyclist to win both the Tour de France and the UCI Road World Championship Road Race in two successive years (2024 and 2025).
Born inLjubljana,[2] the capital of Slovenia (and growing up inKlanec), Pogačar was a successful junior rider, winning the 2018Tour de l'Avenir. Aged 20 in 2019, he became the youngest cyclist to win aUCI World Tour race at theTour of California,[9] and won three stages of theVuelta a España en route to an overall third-place finish and the young rider title.[10][11] In both his2020 debut at the Tour de France and thefollowing year, he won three stages and the race overall, as well as themountains andyoung-rider classifications, becoming the only rider to win these three classifications simultaneously.[12][13] 2021 also saw Pogačar's first successes in the major Monument one-day races, at theGiro di Lombardia andLiège–Bastogne–Liège. Subsequent seasons saw further wins in these, with theTour of Flanders also added to his palmarès in2023. Meanwhile, in theGrand Tours, Pogačar had consecutive 2nd-place finishes in the Tour de France toJonas Vingegaard, with whom his rivalry is considered to be one of the greatest of all time.[14][15] This run ended in 2024 when he completed the first Giro d'Italia and Tour de France double since 1998, winning 12 stages across both races.[16]
Pogačar has been praised for his attacking riding style,[17] an approach which Pogačar himself has jokingly referred to as a "stupid instinct"[18] during a time when many others have ridden more conservatively to manage energy levels.[19] His aim to be competitive across both the Monuments and Grand Tours has been labelled as a return to "classic" bike racing of the 1960s–1980s,[17] and this success across multiple fronts has led to him being theUCI road racing world No.1 for a record total number of weeks and record number of consecutive weeks.
Pogačar followed his older brother Tilen in joining the Rog Ljubljana club at the age of nine.[20] In 2011 he came to the attention ofRoad World Championship medalistAndrej Hauptman, who later became his coach, and head coach & selector for the Slovenian national cycling team. Hauptman watched Pogačar pursuing a group of much older teenagers from 100 meters behind. Thinking that Pogačar was struggling to keep up with the older riders, he told the race organisers that they should provide some assistance to Pogačar: the organisers explained that the younger rider was in fact about to lap the group he was chasing.[21][22] Hauptman subsequently managed Pogačar as an under-23 rider with theRog–Ljubljana team, before joining UAE Team Emirates as adirecteur sportif in May 2019, after Pogačar joined the team.[20]
In 2018, Pogačar won theTour de l'Avenir (an under-23 race similar to theTour de France), riding for theSlovenian national team.[23]
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In August 2018,UAE Team Emirates announced they had signed Pogačar for the 2019 season, describing him as a "very talented young Slovenian cyclist".[24] In 2019, Pogačar made his debut for the team at theTour Down Under, where he finished 13th overall. He went on to win theVolta ao Algarve, taking the race lead after winning the second stage.[25] He also placed sixth at theTour of the Basque Country.[20] In May 2019, he won theTour of California, becoming the youngest rider to win aUCI WorldTour stage race.[21] He took the race lead after winning the queen stage toMount Baldy on stage 6.[26] In June, Pogačar won the Slovenian national time trial championship after beatingMatej Mohorič by 29 seconds.[27]
In August, Pogačar was named in the team's start list for theVuelta a España, his debut in aGrand Tour.[28] In the first week, he performed strongly, placing himself in the top ten on GC (General Classification) before winning his first Grand Tour stage on the rain-soaked stage to Cortals d'Encamp.[29] The win allowed him to move inside the top five on GC. On stage 13, which finished on the steep climb ofLos Machucos, he was the only rider to stay with the race leader and his compatriot,Primož Roglič. Pogačar ended up winning his second stage to move up to third overall,[30] where he stayed heading into the second rest day. After losing time on stage 18, he dropped down to fifth on GC.[31] On the penultimate stage, with one last chance to move up the standings, Pogačar launched an attack, going on an almost 40-kilometre (25 mi) solo breakaway. He eventually took his third stage win, winning by more than a minute and a half over the rest of the contenders. The win allowed him to finish the Vuelta in third overall, the final podium position, and giving him the victory in the young rider classification.[32][33]
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Before the season started, Pogačar announced that he was making his debut at theTour de France, where he planned on riding in support ofFabio Aru.[34] He made his season debut at theVolta a la Comunitat Valenciana, where he won two stages on his way to winning the race.[35] At the curtailedUAE Tour, he won the fifth stage, which finished atop theJebel Hafeet,[36] and finishing second toAdam Yates on GC. In March, cycling events were among those postponed by theCOVID-19 pandemic. When the season resumed, he took fourth overall in theCritérium du Dauphiné. In the Slovenian national championships, he finished second toPrimož Roglič in the road race[37] before defeating him in the time trial, defending his title.[38]
In theTour de France, Pogačar quickly demonstrated that he was in better form than Aru, his team's initial leader, after finishing second to Roglič on stage four, which finished atop the climb of Orcières-Merlette.[39] He lost almost a minute and a half on stage 7, which was affected by crosswinds.[40] The next day, he began to claw back time when he attacked on theCol de Peyresourde, gaining back 38 seconds over the rest of the contenders.[41] After Aru withdrew on stage 9, Pogačar won the stage toLaruns, his first Tour stage win, by outsprintingEgan Bernal and Roglič, who took themaillot jaune, as well asMarc Hirschi, who had been on an 80-kilometre (50 mi) solo breakaway.[42] On stage 13, which finished atop the steep climb ofPuy Mary, he was the only rider to stay with Roglič and moving up to second overall at 44 seconds down.[43] He also took the lead in the young rider classification in the process. Two days later, he outsprinted Roglič at the top of theCol du Grand Colombier to take his second stage of the race.[44]
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At the beginning of the third week, Pogačar sat in second overall at 40 seconds behind Roglič. On stage 17, the queen stage, which finished atop theCol de la Loze, he struggled to follow Roglič, eventually losing 17 seconds.[45] Ahead of the penultimate stage, a 36.2-kilometre (22.5 mi)time trial finishing atLa Planche des Belles Filles, Pogačar faced a 57-second deficit to Roglič. He began to claw back time from his compatriot, and he headed into the final climb with a lead of 36 seconds in the stage and a deficit of 21 seconds on the virtual GC. Pogačar gained time on the climb before going into the virtualmaillot jaune with 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) left. He took the stage victory, his third of the race, almost a minute and a half ahead ofTom Dumoulin while Roglič finished almost two minutes down. The result meant he took themaillot jaune with a lead of 59 seconds on Roglič and the lead in the mountain classification.[46][47] The next day, he finished safely in the peloton to officially win the Tour, becoming the first Slovenian winner of the race.[48] At the age of 21, he also became the second youngest winner of the Tour, just behindHenri Cornet, who won the Tour in1904 at the age of 19. In addition to winning the Tour, he also won theyoung rider classification as well as themountains classification.[49] The previous rider to win three jerseys wasEddy Merckx in1972. He became the twelfth rider to win the Tour de France on his first attempt, and the first since1983.[50]
After the Tour, Pogačar competed in themen's road race at the World Championships, where he supported Roglič, who finished in sixth place.[51] Three days later, he competed atLa Flèche Wallonne where he finished in ninth place. He ended his season atLiège–Bastogne–Liège, where he originally finished in fourth place before moving up to third followingJulian Alaphilippe's relegation.[52]
Pogačar started the 2021 season by winning theUAE Tour,Tirreno–Adriatico,Liège–Bastogne–Liège – his first win in amonument[20] and theTour of Slovenia.
Pogačar began the2021 Tour de France as one of the pre-race favorites along with Primož Roglič,Geraint Thomas andRichard Carapaz. On stage one he finished with the group of favorites eight seconds behind stage winnerJulian Alaphilippe and took the lead in thewhite jersey classification. Pogačar won the fifth stage, the race's first time trial, finishing 18 seconds ahead ofStefan Küng and taking significant time out of his GC rivals.[53] On stage eight he launched an attack, from more than six minutes behind the breakaway, taking over theyellow jersey with a lead of over four and a half minutes on those considered to be contenders for the overall victory.[54] Pogačar extended his GC lead on the ninth stage toTignes, responding to an attack by Carapaz on the final climb 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from the finish and dropping his rivals in the main group, emerging with an overall lead of over two minutes over second placedBen O'Connor, who had moved up the order after winning the stage from the breakaway.[55]
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Following stage eleven, which included a double ascent ofMont Ventoux, the closest rivals to Pogačar includedRigoberto Urán,Jonas Vingegaard and Carapaz, but all them remained more than five minutes behind. Pogačar had temporarily lost some time to Vingegaard on the final ascent of Ventoux before catching him on the descent to the finish alongside Carapaz and Uran.[56] Pogačar extended his lead further with wins on stages 17 (to theCol de Portet)[57] and 18 (inLuz Ardiden), by which point he had a lead of 5' 45" over Vingegaard and an unassailable lead in thepolka dot jersey classification.[58] On the penultimate 20th stage, a time trial betweenLibourne andSaint-Émilion, Pogačar conceded half a minute to Vingegaard but retained a lead of over five minutes going into the finalstage to Champs-Élysées in Paris.[59]
Pogačar's win made him the youngest cyclist to win consecutive Tours. This was also the second year in a row that he won three distinctive jerseys. Both during and at the end of the Tour there were accusations of doping on social media and in the press due to the dominance Pogačar displayed.[60] When asked about it he answered, "For sure I am not angry about it. They are uncomfortable questions because the [cycling] history was really bad. I totally understand why there are all of these questions."[61]
Jonathan Vaughters, thedirecteur sportif of one of the teams who had a GC rider competing against Pogačar, TeamEF Education–Nippo, offered an explanation for how Pogačar was able to be so successful on stage eight. He explained that the twin factors of uncharacteristic weather conditions and chaotic, uncontrolled racing dynamics played a part.[62] In addition to this in previous years there was usually a dominant team who would contain the attacks of any riders considered a threat for victory, whether it wasTeam Ineos,Team Jumbo-Visma orMovistar Team. During the 2021 Tour teams Ineos and Jumbo had both suffered from the first week crashes and Movistar was not as strong as they had been in years past. As such by the time Pogačar launched his attack late in the stage, there were no teams remaining who were strong enough to keep him in check. Vaughters also stated, "Simply put, the race was so aggressive all day long, along with really the race as a whole on the flats, that basically by the time the peloton was taking in the climbs, they were cooked. This was further exacerbated by the wet conditions."[62]
After the Tour de France, Pogačar won the bronze medal in themen's road race at theOlympic Games after finishing behindWout van Aert in the sprint for the silver medal.[63] At the end of July, UAE Team Emirates announced that they had agreed a one-year extension to his contract, committing him to the team up to the end of 2027.[64] Pogačar took a break from racing following the Olympics, returning to competition at theBretagne Classic Ouest–France at the end of August,[65] where he initially managed to follow an attack by Alaphilippe on a gravelled climb 60 km from the finish along withMikkel Frølich Honoré andBenoît Cosnefroy, but was dropped by the other escapees who went on to take the podium places.[66]
In September he competed at theEuropean Road Championships inTrentino: in theroad race, after a number of breakaways had emerged and been caught by the peloton, he followed an attack byMatteo Trentin to form part of a lead group which expanded to include ten riders. He did not keep pace with a further attack from this group 23 km from the end of the race, with a three-man selection ofRemco Evenepoel,Sonny Colbrelli and Cosnefroy dropping their rivals and securing the medals.[67] At theRoad World Championships inFlanders later that month, Pogačar finished 37th in theroad race.[68] He then moved on to Italy in October to compete in theautumn classics held there: although he failed to finish theGiro dell'Emilia, he made an impression atTre Valli Varesine, animating the race with a long-race attack from 120 km: although he lost contact with the head of the race due to a puncture he won the sprint in the chase group to finish third.[68] AtMilano–Torino, Pogačar managed to keep pace with the other favourites for most of the day, emerging from the peloton's fragmentation in crosswinds 65 km from the end as part of a front group which absorbed the day's early breakaway, and remaining in contention for the win until losing contact with Adam Yates and Roglič in the closing kilometres of the final climb upSuperga: he subsequently lost the two-up sprint for third place toJoão Almeida.[69]
A few days later, Pogačar won his second monument atIl Lombardia, responding to an attack byVincenzo Nibali by dropping the Italian and the rest of the lead group 30 km from the finish: although he was subsequently joined at the front of the race byFausto Masnada, Pogačar won the resulting two-man sprint at the finish line. He became the third rider afterFausto Coppi andEddy Merckx to win two monuments and the Tour in the same year[70] and just fourth rider to win the Tour de France and the Tour of Lombardy in the same season, after Coppi, Merckx andBernard Hinault, and the first to do so in 42 years.[71]
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Pogačar started the season off by defending his title at theUAE Tour, winning both mountaintop finishes in the process.[72] Afterward, he went to Italy for a block of racing, starting with theStrade Bianche. Despite getting involved in a crash with around 100 kilometres to go, Pogačar attacked on the longest sector of the race, the Monte Santa Marie, with around 50 kilometres remaining. Pogačar gradually built his advantage to more than a minute, holding off the chasers to win the race solo.[73] Two days later, Pogačar started his title defense atTirreno-Adriatico. He won the uphill finish on stage four before dominating the queen stage. Pogačar won the general classification by almost two minutes overJonas Vingegaard as well as winning the points and young rider classifications.[74] A week later, Pogačar rodeMilan-San Remo, where he attacked several times on the Poggio before finishing in fifth.[75]
A few days later, Pogačar rode his first cobbled classic, theDwars door Vlaanderen. He was unable to join the winning breakaway from the peloton, and after multiple attempts to bridge the gap, finished tenth.[76] Afterward, he rode theTour of Flanders, his debut at a cobbled Monument. Pogačar attacked on the second ascent ofOude Kwaremont and theKoppenberg to pull ahead of the peloton with a select group of riders. He accelerated twice more on the final ascent of Oude Kwaremont and thePaterberg and onlyMathieu van der Poel was able to go with him. The duo rode slowly inside the final kilometre as they prepared for the sprint but this action allowedDylan van Baarle andValentin Madouas to come back in the final few hundred metres. Pogačar ended up getting boxed in during the sprint, causing him to finish fourth as van der Poel took the win.[77] Following the race, Pogačar shifted his focus to theArdennes classics starting with theFlèche Wallonne, where he finished twelfth.[78] Pogačar was scheduled to defend his title atLiège–Bastogne–Liège but he skipped it after the death of the mother of his fiancée,Urška Žigart.[79] Pogačar returned to competition at theTour of Slovenia, his final race before theTour. He and teammateRafał Majka dominated the race, winning two stages each with Pogačar winning the general classification ahead of Majka.[80]
Pogačar started the Tour with a third place in the first stage's shortindividual time trial, gaining time on his rivals for the general classification.[81] On stage 5, which featured cobbles as part of the route, Pogačar rode an aggressive race to gain 13 seconds on the rest of the favorites.[82] The following day, Pogačar won the uphill sprint toLongwy to move into the yellow jersey.[83] On stage 7, which featured the race's first summit finish atLa Planche des Belles Filles, Pogačar attacked inside the final kilometre. In the final few hundred metres,Jonas Vingegaard put in an acceleration that was only followed by the Slovenian. Pogačar moved past Vingegaard near the line to win his second successive stage, extending his lead to 35 seconds over the Dane.[84] The next stage, Pogačar finished third in another uphill sprint to gain four more bonus seconds, extending his lead to 39 seconds over Vingegaard.[85]
On stage 11, the race headed to the high mountains with a stage featuring the Télégraphe-Galibier combo before a summit finish at Col du Granon. On the Col du Télégraphe and on the lower slopes of Col du Galibier,Primož Roglič and Vingegaard began to repeatedly attack Pogačar but the Slovenian was able to respond each time. Pogačar responded by attacking toward the top of Galibier, bringing only Vingegaard with him. After the rest of the reduced peloton caught the duo on the descent, Vingegaard attacked on the Col du Granon with four kilometres left. Pogačar was unable to respond as he cracked on the climb, losing three minutes and the yellow jersey to Vingegaard, who won the stage.[86] Over the next five stages, Pogačar repeatedly attacked Vingegaard but the Dane was able to respond each time. The race headed to the Pyrenees with Pogačar facing a deficit of almost two and a half minutes to Vingegaard.
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The seventeenth stage featured four climbs including a summit finish at Peyragudes.Mikkel Bjerg set a fast pace on the second climb beforeBrandon McNulty set a furious pace on the third climb, dropping everyone but Pogačar and Vingegaard. On the final climb to Peyragudes, McNulty continued to set the pace before the top two on GC battled it out in a sprint. Pogačar was able to outsprint Vingegaard to win his third stage in the race but the Dane still retained a lead of 2' 18" at the end of the day.[87] The next stage, the race's final mountain stage toHautacam, Pogačar attacked multiple times on the penultimate climb, the Col du Spandelles, but Vingegaard was able to respond each time. On the descent of the Spandelles, Pogačar crashed but he was able to quickly get back up. Vingegaard waited for Pogačar, with the two shaking hands once Pogačar had caught up.[88] On the final climb to Hautacam, Pogačar was dropped by Vingegaard, with the help ofWout van Aert who was in the breakaway. Pogačar lost more than a minute to Vingegaard, who won the stage to consolidate his yellow jersey.[89] On the penultimate day individual time trial, Pogačar finished third to consolidate his second place on GC before the final stage toChamps-Élysées.[90] Pogačar finished the stage safely to officially finish second on GC as well as taking the young rider classification.[91]
After the Tour, Pogačar elected to skip the2022 Vuelta a España.[92] Pogačar returned to racing at theClásica de San Sebastián, where he was unable to keep up with the pace before climbing off.[93] After a one-month break, Pogačar rode at theBretagne Classic andGP Québec, but was unable to battle for the win in either race.[94][95] At theGP Montréal, Pogačar was part of the five-man lead group that contested for the win. At the finish, Pogačar outsprinted van Aert to take his fourteenth win of the season.[96] Afterward, he travelled to Australia to compete at theWorld Championships. Pogačar finished sixth in theindividual time trial before crossing the line in 19th at theroad race.[97][98]
To finish the season, Pogačar went to Italy for the autumn classics. At theGiro dell'Emilia, Pogačar finished second after he was dropped byEnric Mas on the final climb of San Luca.[99] As his final preparation for his title defense at Il Lombardia, Pogačar rode at theTre Valli Varesine, where he outsprinted the lead group to win the race, his fifteenth of the season.[100] Pogačar ended his season at theIl Lombardia, the final Monument of the year. After his team controlled the majority of the race, Pogačar attacked on the climb of Civiglio with around 20 kilometres left. The only ones who were able to follow his move were Mas andMikel Landa. On the final climb, the San Fermo della Battaglia, Pogačar and Mas dropped Landa before contesting the win in a two-up sprint. At the line, Pogačar outsprinted Mas to successfully defend his Il Lombardia title.[101] With 16 wins, Pogačar led the men's peloton with the most wins in the 2022 season.
Pogačar started off the 2023 season with a win at theJaén Paraiso Interior, before winning the overall in theVuelta a Andalucía, as well as taking three stage victories and the points classification.[102] Pogačar's next race wasParis-Nice, where he again won the overall and three stages, defeating his rivalJonas Vingegaard in their first stage race head-to-head since the2022 Tour de France.[103]
Pogačar continued his dominant start to the season with a podium finish atE3 Saxo Classic, before claiming victory at the2023 Tour of Flanders, dropping defending championMathieu van der Poel on theKwaremont and riding solo for the final 19 km.[104] This made Pogačar only the third male cyclist to win both the Tour de France and Tour of Flanders, afterLouison Bobet andEddy Merckx. Next, Pogačar won theAmstel Gold Race andLa Flèche Wallonne, completing theArdennes triple after winningLiège–Bastogne–Liège in 2021.[105]
At the start of the2023 Liège–Bastogne–Liège on 23 April, Pogačar crashed withMikkel Honore, which left him with a fractured wrist, bringing an end to his race.[106] His wrist was successfully operated on and Pogačar was able to return to training on the indoor bike a few weeks after, before joining his team at their training camp inSierra Nevada.[107] This injury occurred only months away from theTour de France, casting doubts on whether he would be fit to race or be in the form he needed to compete in theGeneral Classification and he had only two race days to get in shape before the Tour de France.[108][109]Pogačar won Stage 6[110] of the Tour de France 2023 from Tarbes to Cauterets-Cambasque, and Stage 20 from Belfort to Le Markstein. He came second overall in the general classification and has won thewhite jersey a record fourth time. He also set the record of days in white jersey at 75 days in total.
In August, Pogačar attended theUCI World Championships, where he took bronze in theroad race behindMathieu van der Poel andWout van Aert. To finish his season, Pogačar won the2023 Il Lombardia, his third consecutive victory at the race.[111]
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Pogačar announced a challenging racing schedule for 2024, aiming for aGiro d'Italia andTour de France double, alongside competing at theSummer Olympics andUCI World Championships.[112] This program placed him in contention for theTriple Crown of Cycling, the feat of winning the Giro, Tour, and world championship road race in a single year, which has been called "cycling's most elite club".[113] The Giro-Tour double alone, last completed byMarco Pantani in 1998, was considered "near-impossible" by cycling commentators.[114]
On 2 March, Pogačar opened his season by winningStrade Bianche. He attacked with 81 km (50 mi) to the finish, riding solo and winning by over two minutes ahead of second-placeToms Skujiņš.[115] AtMilan-San Remo, Pogačar set a record time up thePoggio climb but failed to distance the field, finishing third in a bunch sprint.[116] Pogačar's next race was theVolta a Catalunya, where he won the general, points, and mountain classifications. He won four of the seven stages, finishing the race nearly four minutes ahead of runner-upMikel Landa.[117]
In April, Pogačar wonLiège–Bastogne–Liège with a solo attack from 35 km (22 mi), his second victory at the race. He finished with a lead of one minute and 39 seconds, the largest winning margin since 1980. It was his sixth career Monument victory, tied withMathieu van der Poel for the most by an active rider at the time.[118]
Pogačar began theGiro d'Italia as the heavy favorite to win the overall general classification.[119] On stage 2, he attacked on the final climb toSantuario di Oropa, winning the stage solo and taking the pink jersey.[120] Pogačar won theindividual time trial on stage 7 ahead of formerworld champion and stage favoriteFilippo Ganna, before winning again the next day in an uphill sprint.[121] Pogačar again won back-to-back on stages 15 and 16: first attacking solo and closing a gap of almost three minutes to the breakaway to win thequeen stage toLivigno, then winning on the summit finish of the rain-shortened stage 16.[122][123] On the penultimate stage 20, he attacked on theMonte Grappa and completed a 36 km (22 mi) solo to win his sixth stage of the race.[124] Pogačar finished the race in Rome, winning both themountains andgeneral classifications. His margin of nearly 10 minutes ahead of runner-upDaniel Martínez was the largest since1965.[125]
In June, Pogačar started theTour de France; it was his first time riding two Grand Tours in the same year.[126] He wore themaillot jaune after stage 2, then held it from stage 4 until the end of the race. In total, Pogačar won six stages—4, 14, 15, 19, 20, and 21 (ITT)—including a victory on stage 15 toPlateau de Beille, where he beat Marco Pantani's climbing record by over three minutes, a feat multiple analysts called the greatest climbing performance in cycling history.[127][128] Pogačar himself called it the best performance of his career.[129] By winning stages 19–21 he became the first non-sprinter since 1938 to win three consecutive stages at the Tour. Across both Grand Tours, he wore the leader's jersey after 39 stages (20 in the Giro, 19 in the Tour), an all-time record ahead ofEddy Merckx with 37 in 1970 andChris Froome with 34 in 2017.[130] The day after the Tour concluded, Pogačar withdrew from the Slovenia team for theParis Olympics due to "extreme fatigue";[131][132] his decision was also swayed by the Slovenian Olympic Committee, which had not selected his fiancé Urška Žigart to compete at the Olympic Games – despite Žigart being the Slovenian national champion in the road race and time trial.[133][134] After media speculation he would ride three consecutive Grand Tours, Pogačar also decided not to compete in theVuelta a España.[135][136]
After a nearly two-month break from racing, Pogačar returned at theGrand Prix Cycliste de Québec, where he placed 7th after attacking and being caught by the peloton in the closing kilometers.[137] At theGrand Prix Cycliste de Montréal, Pogačar won after a 23 km (14 mi) solo attack, winning by a margin of 24 seconds.[138] Pogačar continued on to theUCI World Championships, where he won theroad race ahead ofBen O'Connor and defending championMathieu van der Poel.[139] Pogačar was a heavy pre-race favorite, but the manner in which he won shocked both commentators and his fellow racers: attacking with over 100 km (62 mi) left in the race, and riding solo for the final 50 kilometres to his first world champion title.[140][141][142] This made him the third male cyclist to complete the Triple Crown of Cycling, after Eddy Merckx in 1974 andStephen Roche in 1987.[143]
In October, Pogačar raced the Italianautumn classics, starting with theGiro dell'Emilia. With 37 km (23 mi) to go, Pogačar responded to an attack fromRemco Evenepoel, then counterattacked and rode solo for the remainder of the race, winning by a margin of nearly two minutes.[144] Pogačar rodeTre Valli Varesine, but the race was cancelled due to bad weather after three laps.[145][146] InIl Lombardia, the final Monument of the cycling calendar, Pogačar attacked from 48 km (30 mi) out, riding solo to win by over 3 minutes ahead of runner-up Remco Evenepoel.[147] This was the largest winning margin at the race sinceEddy Merckx in 1971. It also marked Pogačar's fourth Il Lombardia title, a feat not seen sinceFausto Coppi over 75 years earlier.[148]
At the end of October, UAE Team Emirates announced that they had signed a contract extension with Pogačar until 2030,[149] with media reporting that the deal would net him €50 million over 5 years, not including bonuses.[150] Media reported that the contract included a €200 millionbuyout clause to prevent Pogačar moving to another team.[150]
Pogačar finished the 2024 season with 25 wins, 24 of them at theWorldTour level. CompatriotPrimož Roglič followed in the WorldTour victories ranking with 8 wins, andTim Merlier followed in the professional victories ranking with 16 wins.[151] For the fourth consecutive year, Pogačar finished first in theIndividual UCI World Rankings with a record 11655 points.[152] His 2024 season is widely regarded as the greatest ever.[153][154][155]
Again there were suspicions of doping, to which he replied at the press conference following his win at the Tour: "There will always be jealousy".[156]
In January, Pogačar and his team announced his planned race schedule for 2025: focusing first on the spring classics, includingMilan–San Remo and theTour of Flanders, before climbing-focused training leading into the Tour de France and world championships.[157] Media commentators have also forecasted that Pogačar will attempt the Tour-Vuelta a España double, as the Vuelta a España is the only Grand Tour missing from his palmarès as of 2025.[158]
Pogačar began his season at theUAE Tour. On stage 3 to the summit ofJebel Jais, he outsprinted a small group to take the stage win and overall leader's jersey.[159] On stage 7 to the summit ofJebel Hafeet, Pogačar won after a 7.5 km (4.7 mi) solo effort, sealing his general classification victory.[160] In March, Pogačar began his spring classics campaign atStrade Bianche. After forming a breakaway withTom Pidcock, Pogačar suffered a high-speed crash on the descent fromMonteaperti with 50 km (31 mi) to the finish. Pogačar avoided serious injury, and after a second stop to change his bike, he rejoined Pidcock. With 19 km (12 mi) to go, Pogačar dropped Pidcock to defend his title, tyingFabian Cancellara's record with three victories in the race.[161] AtMilan—San Remo, Pogačar attacked several times on the Cipressa and the Poggio, dropping everyone butMathieu van der Poel andFilippo Ganna, both of whom were able to out-sprint him for the top two podium positions, respectively.[162] In March, Pogačar announced that he would enterParis–Roubaix for the first time.[163]
In April, Pogačar raced theTour of Flanders, and was considered one of the top pre-race favorites alongside Mathieu van der Poel. During the race, Pogačar attacked repeatedly, finally distancing van der Poel on the final ascent of theOude Kwaremont and soloing the final 19 km to win his second Tour of Flanders title.[164] A week later, in hisParis-Roubaix debut, Pogačar managed to form a two-man lead group with van der Poel that went deep into the race. However, on sector 9 with 38 km (24 mi) to go, Pogačar crashed on a right-hand turn, forcing him to change his bike and leaving van der Poel at the front. He tried to come back but he was forced to change his bike again following a puncture. He ended up finishing second, more than a minute behind van der Poel.[165]
Pogačar concluded his first part of the season at theArdennes classics. He first raced theAmstel Gold Race where, after following an attack byAlaphilippe on the Kruisberg, he was caught byEvenepoel andSkjelmose, and ultimately sprinted to a second place.[166] AtLa Flèche Wallonne, he attacked on the last passage on theMur de Huy, winning with a margin of 10 seconds, the biggest at La Flèche Wallonne sinceIgor Astarloa in 2003.[167] Finally, he secured a win atLiège-Bastogne-Liège by attacking for the second consecutive year on the La Redoute and soloing to victory.[168]
Pogačar returned to racing in June at theCritérium du Dauphiné, where he faced off against Vingegaard for the first time this season. On stage 1, Pogačar won the stage in a sprint after featuring in a late breakaway with van der Poel, Vingegaard, Evenepoel, andSantiago Buitrago.[169] After losing time to both Evenepoel an Vingegaard during the individual time trial on stage 4,[170] he bounced back on the first mountain stage on stage 6. Pogačar dropped everyone on the final climb following a hard leadout fromJhonatan Narváez before soloing to the finish by a minute over Vingegaard, taking the yellow jersey in the process.[171] He also proceeded to win the queen stage the following day[172] before holding off an attack from Vingegaard on the final stage to confirm his victory in the race.[173]
In July, Pogačar won theTour de France for the fourth time, beating Vingegaard by over 4 minutes. His advantage began to grow after winning the fourth stage toRouen, where he outsprinted van der Poel to take his 100th career victory.[174] He placed second in the firstindividual time trial the following day, taking more than a minute on Vingegaard.[175] After winning the seventh stage toMûr-de-Bretagne,[176] Pogačar solidified his advantage in thePyrenees in the second week. On the first mountain stage toHautacam, Pogačar dropped Vingegaard with 12 kilometres to go after another hard leadout from Narváez, winning the stage by more than two minutes.[177] The following day, on the mountain time trial toPeyragudes, Pogačar took his second successive stage, beating Vingegaard by 36 seconds.[178] In the final week, he rode defensively, holding off attacks from other general classification contenders to secure the yellow jersey.[179] On thefinal stage to Champs-Élysées, which was recently changed to feature three ascents of the cobbled climb to Montmartre, Pogačar lit up the race in the rain, accelerating on the last two ascents of Montmartre. However, he was unable to dropWout van Aert, who counterattacked to win the stage.[180] In the end, Pogačar won four stages, taking his career total of stage wins at the Tour to 21.[181] A few days after his Tour victory, his team announced that he was going to skip theVuelta, citing fatigue as the reason for this decision.[182] In the autumn of 2025, Pogačar revealed had developed a knee injury in the final week of the Tour,[183] with his teammate Wellens revealing that Pogačar had considered abandoning.[184][185]
At theUCI Road World Championships inKigali, Pogačar was selected to represent Slovenia in both the time trial and road race. He finished fourth in the time trial, just one second off the podium, before winning his second consecutive road race title the following week.[186][187] During the race, Pogačar first attacked from the peloton with 104 km (65 mi) to go, riding the final 67 km (42 mi) solo to finish over a minute ahead of runner-upRemco Evenepoel.[187][188]
At the2025 Il Lombardia he attacked with 36 km to go and rode solo to the finish. It was Pogačar's fifth consecutive victory at the Giro di Lombardia, equalling the record of Fausto Coppi and becoming the first rider to win a monument 5 consecutive times. He also became the first rider to stand on the podium in all 5 monuments in the same season.
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Pogačar's rivalry with Danish cyclistJonas Vingegaard is considered the defining narrative of theTour de France in the 2020s, and one of the greatest cycling rivalries of all time.[189][190][191] Pogačar and Vingegaard finished first and second at five consecutive Tours from 2021 to 2025: Pogačar winning in2021,2024, and2025; Vingegaard winning in2022 and2023. Throughout these tours they have placed first and second at 15 stages as well as in the 2021young rider classification and 2025mountains classification. They have also faced off at other high-profile stage races like the2022 Tirreno–Adriatico,2023 Paris-Nice, and the2025 Critérium du Dauphiné. Pogačar and Vingegaard have been described by analysts as "lightyears ahead of the rest" of the men's peloton ingeneral classification competition.[192]
Pogačar primarily competes with Dutch cyclistMathieu van der Poel at one-dayclassics. The two are regarded by some journalists as the pre-eminent one-day riders of their generation: Pogačar has ten victories incycling's Monuments and van der Poel has eight, totals which place them far ahead of any other active cyclist in terms of Monument victories.[193][194] While the two riders have frequently competed in the same races since 2020, media coverage of their rivalry increased in 2025.[195][196][197] Their dominance was highlighted in the 2025 spring classics, where the pair swept all four Monuments: van der Poel wonMilan-San Remo andParis–Roubaix, with Pogačar finishing third and second respectively; Pogačar won theTour of Flanders ahead of van der Poel, then won2025 Liège–Bastogne–Liège where van der Poel was absent.[198] Former Tour de France winnerÓscar Pereiro has called their competition the best cycling rivalry since the 1990s.[199]
Pogačar is considered unique in the modern peloton for his attacking and improvisational riding style. In an era where many riders are increasingly conservative and pursue marginal gains, Pogačar has been praised by media and former riders for making cycling races more entertaining.[17][19] He is known for his "trademark long-range attacks",[200] particularly his performances in the 2024 and 2025 UCI World Championships, where he made his first move with over 100 kilometres (62 mi) to the finish.[201] In an interview after his 2024 world championship victory, Pogačar stated "For sure it was a stupid move, but in the end stupid worked."[202]
Comparisons withEddy Merckx, who is widely considered the most successful rider in the history of competitive cycling,[203][204] have been made throughout Pogačar's career.Cyrille Guimard, a former rival of Merckx and adirecteur sportif of multiple former Tour champions, said in 2020 that he believed Pogačar was above the level of both Merckx andBernard Hinault.[205] During the 2021 Tour de France, after Pogačar took the yellow jersey and gained over three minutes on the other general classification contenders, former Tour winnerJoop Zoetemelk compared him to Merckx.[206] By the end of the Tour, which Pogačar won by over five minutes, Merckx himself said he regarded the Slovenian as "the new Cannibal", referencing his own nickname, and suggested "If nothing happens to him, [Pogačar] can certainly win the Tour de France more than five times."[207]
Following Pogačar's victory at the2021 Il Lombardia, Merckx said that while many cyclists had been called "the new Merckx", Pogačar was the first to truly fulfill that promise based on his accomplishments.[208]Ernesto Colnago expressed similar thoughts, saying that in his view Pogačar would be "the only one following Eddy Merckx" in cycling history.[209]
During Pogačar's 2024 season, the comparisons intensified. After his win in the2024 Giro d'Italia, five-time Tour winner Bernard Hinault said "he's like me and Merckx," citing Pogačar's dominance and racing style.[210] After the Tour, the Spanish newspaperEl País proclaimed: "Tadej Pogačar is the Cannibal 2".[211] Following the World Championships, in which Pogačar went solo for the final 100 km to win, Merckx said toL'Équipe "It's obvious that he is now above me."[212][213] However, he later said that he was referring specifically to the World Championships performance, and did not believe Pogačar to be superior to him yet.[214][215] Pogačar's 2024 season has been compared favorably to Merckx's 1972 season, which is considered the best of Merckx's career; they both won the Tour-Giro double and multiple Monuments.[216]
During the 2025 Tour de France,The Athletic's Jacob Whitehead called Pogačar "a possible equal of Eddy Merckx — or more" in light of his "crushing dominance" at the Tour.[217] Pogačar himself has commented on the comparison, saying "[Merckx] palmarès is unbelievable. It's something you cannot imagine to achieve in this era."[204]
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Tadej was born inLjubljana,[2] but grew up 20 km north of the Slovenian capital inKlanec (Municipality of Komenda). His mother Marjeta is a teacher of French and his father Mirko formerly worked in management at a chair factory before joining Tadej's former teamLjubljana Gusto Santic as part of their management team in 2021. Tadej is the third of four siblings.[20] In addition to his nativeSlovenian, Pogačar speaks fluent English.[218][219]
In August 2023, Pogačar participated in a charity event for victims of the2023 Slovenia floods, donating 10,000 euros and an additional 10 euros for each photograph with fans in Ljubljana. He posed in over 1200 photographs in total.[220]
Pogačar lives in Monaco with his partner, fellow Slovenian professional cyclistUrška Žigart.[221] They became engaged in September 2021.[222]
Ho sentito dire tante volte "questo è il nuovo Merckx" senza che poi le premesse si realizzassero, ma con Tadej penso che stavolta ci siamo davvero.
Eddy Merckx ce n'è uno solo, però lui, secondo la mia esperienza, e sono un uomo di quasi 90 anni, sarà l'unico che seguirà Eddy Merckx
I was referring to what he did in the world championship, on that particular route. It was incredible, and I said it as I thought. But no, beyond that, I don't think Pogačar is superior to Eddy Merckx
Me refería a lo que hizo en el campeonato del mundo, en ese recorrido en concreto. Fue increíble, y lo dije tal cual lo pensaba, pero no, más allá de eso, no creo que Pogacar sea superior a Eddy Merckx. Ha ganado solo tres Tours. Todavía no es superior a mí. Tiene un camino largo hasta ser mejor que Eddy Merckx
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