Tadej Pogačar (Slovene pronunciation:[taˈdɛ́ːjpɔˈɡáːtʃaɾ]ⓘ;[5] born 21 September 1998) is a Slovenian professionalcyclist who currently rides forUCI WorldTeamUAE Team Emirates XRG.[6] His victories include threeTours de France (2020,2021 and2024), the2024Giro d'Italia, and eight one-dayMonuments (Tour of Flanders twice,Liège–Bastogne–Liège twice andGiro di Lombardia four times), as well as the World Championship Road Race.[7] Comfortable in time-trialing, one-day classic riding and grand-tour climbing, he has been compared to legendary all-round cyclists such asEddy Merckx andBernard Hinault as one of the sport's greatest.[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.
Born inKlanec, Slovenia, 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 medallistAndrej Hauptman, who is, as of 2021, his coach and head coach and 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]
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Pogačar joinedUAE Team Emirates from the 2019 season, a deal that was made ahead of the 2018Tour de l'Avenir, which he won. He 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.[23] 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.[24] In June, Pogačar won the Slovenian national time trial championship after beatingMatej Mohorič by 29 seconds.[25]
In August, Pogačar was named in the team's start list for theVuelta a España, his debut in aGrand Tour.[26] 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.[27] 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,[28] where he stayed heading into the second rest day. After losing time on stage 18, he dropped down to fifth on GC.[29] 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.[30][31]
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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.[32] He made his season debut at theVolta a la Comunitat Valenciana, where he won two stages on his way to winning the race.[33] At the curtailedUAE Tour, he won the fifth stage, which finished atop theJebel Hafeet,[34] 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[35] before defeating him in the time trial, defending his title.[36]
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.[37] He lost almost a minute and a half on stage 7, which was affected by crosswinds.[38] 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.[39] After Aru withdrew on stage 9, Pogacar 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.[40] 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.[41] 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.[42]
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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.[43] 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. At the first time check, he had already managed to claw back 13 seconds from his compatriot. He headed into the final climb with a lead of 36 seconds and a deficit of 21 seconds on the virtual GC. Pogačar gradually gained time on the climb before going into the virtualmaillot jaune with 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) left. He eventually 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.[44][45] The next day, he finished safely in the peloton to officially win the Tour, becoming the first Slovenian winner of the race.[46] 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.[47] 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.[48]
After the Tour, Pogačar competed in themen's road race at the World Championships, where he supported Roglič, who eventually finished in sixth place.[49] 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.[50]
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.[51] 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.[52] 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.[53]
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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.[54] Pogačar extended his lead further with wins on stages 17 (to theCol de Portet)[55] 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.[56] 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.[57]
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.[58] 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."[59]
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.[60] 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."[60]
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.[61] 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.[62] Pogačar took a break from racing following the Olympics, returning to competition at theBretagne Classic Ouest–France at the end of August,[63] 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.[64]
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.[65] At theRoad World Championships inFlanders later that month, Pogačar finished 37th in theroad race.[66]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.[66] 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.[67]
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[68] 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.[69]
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Pogačar started the season off by defending his title at theUAE Tour, winning both mountaintop finishes in the process.[70] 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.[71] 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.[72] A week later, Pogačar rodeMilan-San Remo, where he attacked several times on the Poggio before finishing in fifth.[73]
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.[74] 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.[75] Following the race, Pogačar shifted his focus to theArdennes classics starting with theFlèche Wallonne, where he finished twelfth.[76] 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.[77] 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.[78]
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.[79] 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.[80] The following day, Pogačar won the uphill sprint toLongwy to move into the yellow jersey.[81] 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.[82] The next stage, Pogačar finished third in another uphill sprint to gain four more bonus seconds, extending his lead to 39 seconds over Vingegaard.[83]
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.[84] 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.[85] 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.[86] 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.[87] On the penultimate day individual time trial, Pogačar finished third to consolidate his second place on GC before the final stage toChamps-Élysées.[88] Pogačar finished the stage safely to officially finish second on GC as well as taking the young rider classification.[89]
After the Tour, Pogačar elected to skip the2022 Vuelta a España.[90] Pogačar returned to racing at theClásica de San Sebastián, where he was unable to keep up with the pace before climbing off.[91] After a one month break, Pogačar rode at theBretagne Classic andGP Québec, but was unable to battle for the win in either race.[92][93] 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.[94] 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.[95][96]
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.[97] 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.[98] 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.[99] With 16 wins, Pogacar 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 3 stage victories and the points classification.[100] Pogačar's next race wasParis-Nice, where he again won the overall and 3 stages, defeating his rivalJonas Vingegaard in their first stage race head-to-head since the2022 Tour de France.[101]
Pogačar continued his dominant start to the season with a podium finish atE3 Saxo Classic, before claiming a historic victory at the2023 Tour of Flanders, dropping defending championMathieu van der Poel on theKwaremont and riding solo for the final 19 km.[102] 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 2022.[103]
At the start of the2023 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Pogačar crashed withMikkel Honore, which left him with a fractured wrist, bringing an end to his race.[104] 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.[105] 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.[106][107]Pogačar won Stage 6[108] 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, Pogacar attended theUCI World Championships, where he took bronze in theroad race behindMathieu van der Poel andWout van Aert. To finish his season, Pogacar won the2023 Il Lombardia, his third consecutive victory at the race.[109]
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Pogačar announced a challenging 2024 racing schedule, aiming for aGiro d'Italia andTour de France double, as well as theOlympic time trial and road race, and theWorld Championships road race.[110] This pursuit brings him into contention for the prestigiousTriple Crown of Cycling, a feat involving winning the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and UCI Road World Championships in a single year, an achievement considered by many to be the greatest single feat in cycling. Additionally, only seven riders have accomplished the Giro-Tour double, withMarco Pantani being the most recent in 1998.[111]
On 2 March, in his opening race of the year, Pogačar won theStrade Bianche with a long solo attack, breaking away with 81 kilometers to go and winning by over two and a half minutes ahead of second-placeToms Skujiņš.[112] On 16 March, he placed third atMilan-San Remo, after setting a record time up the Poggio but failing to distance himself enough from the field.[113] Pogačar then won the general, points, and mountain classifications at theVolta a Catalunya, held from 18 to 24 March. He secured victory in four of the seven stages, and finished the race nearly four minutes ahead of second-place finisherMikel Landa.[114]
On 21 April, Pogačar secured his second victory atLiège–Bastogne–Liège with a solo attack from 35 kilometers out, winning his 6th career monument at just 25 years of age. He crossed the finish line with a lead of 1 minute and 39 seconds, the largest winning margin since 1980.[115]
Pogačar began theGiro d'Italia as the heavy favorite to win the overall general classification.[116] On stage 2, he launched a solo attack on the steep climb to Santuario di Oropa, winning the stage, taking the pink jersey, and securing a 45 second advantage overGeraint Thomas.[117] Pogačar won theindividual time trial on stage 7 ahead of two-timeITT world champion and stage favouriteFilippo Ganna, after turning a 44 second deficit at the bottom of the final climb into a 17 second advantage on the finish line. The next day, Pogačar won stage 8 by managing the race from the front and winning the final uphill sprint.[118] In the third and final week of the race, he added back-to-back wins. First with a stunning solo attack on stage 15, the queen- and hardest stage of the Giro, by closing a gap of almost three minutes to the breakaway, includingNairo Quintana, on the final climb before dropping the 2014 winner of the race. Then again after the rest day, he won on the summit finish of the rain-shortened stage 16.[119][120] He attacked on the second ascent of Stage 20 on theMonte Grappa, once again dropping everyone before successfully completing a 36-kilometre solo and taking two more minutes on the other GC contenders.[121][122] Pogačar would lead the2024 Giro d'Italia into Rome with an enormous margin of nearly 10 minutes, six stage wins and the mountains classification.[123]
Pogačar entered the2024 Tour de France with the ambition to win theGC and take the Giro-Tour double.[124] He succeeded in doing so, taking themaillot jaune after Stage 4 and continuing to wear it until the conclusion of the race. He also won six stages – 4, 14, 15, 19, 20 & 21 (ITT) – including a win in the final time trial by over a minute. By winning Stages 19–21 he became the first non-sprinter since 1938 to win three consecutive stages at the Tour. His 39 leader's jerseys in a Grand Tour in 2024 is an all time record (20 in Giro and 19 in Tour) ahead of Eddy Merckx's 37 in 1970 and Chris Froome's 34 in 2017.[125] The day after the Tour concluded, Pogačar withdrew from the Slovenia team for theParis Olympics due to "extreme fatigue";[126][127] his decision was also swayed by the Slovenian Olympic Committee, which had not selected his girlfriend Urška Žigart to compete at the Olympic Games – despite Žigart being the Slovenian national champion in the road race and time trial.[128][129] He also decided not to compete in theVuelta a España.[130]
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.[131] At theGrand Prix Cycliste de Montréal, Pogačar won with a dominant solo victory, attacking on a climb with 23 kilometres to go and winning by a margin of 24 seconds.[132] Pogacar continued on to theUCI World Championships, where he won theroad race ahead ofBen O'Connor and defending championMathieu van der Poel.[133] 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 left in the race, and riding solo for the final 50 kilometres to his first world champion title.[134][135][136] This was a pre-season goal he had set himself, to become only the third male cyclist to complete the Triple Crown of cycling afterEddy Merckx andStephen Roche.[137]
In October, Pogačar raced the Italianautumn classics, starting with theGiro dell'Emilia. With 37 km to go, Pogačar responded to an attack fromRemco Evenepoel, then counter attacked and rode solo for the remainder of the race, winning by a margin of nearly two minutes.[138] Pogačar rodeTre Valli Varesine, but the race was cancelled due to bad weather after three laps.[139][140]
InIl Lombardia, the final Monument of the cycling calendar, Pogacar attacked from 48 km out, riding solo to win by over 3 minutes ahead of runner-up Remco Evenepoel.[141] This was the largest winning margin at the race sinceEddy Merckx in 1971. It also marked Pogacar's fourth Il Lombardia title, a feat not seen sinceFausto Coppi over 75 years earlier.[142]
Pogačar finished the 2024 season with 25 wins, 24 of them being onWorldTour level. CompatriotPrimož Roglič followed in the WorldTour level victories ranking with 8 wins, andTim Merlier followed in the professional victories ranking with 16 wins. For the fourth consecutive year, Pogačar finished first in theIndividual UCI World Rankings with a record 11655 points. His 2024 season is widely regarded as the greatest ever.[143][144]
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.[145] 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.[146]
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.[147] On stage 7 to the summit ofJebel Hafeet, Pogačar won after a 7.5km solo effort, sealing his general classification victory.[148] In March, Pogačar began his spring classics campaign atStrade Bianche. With 78 kilometres to go, Pogačar followed an attack fromTom Pidcock on the hardest gravel sector, Monte Sante Marie. However, with 50 kilometres left, Pogačar had a high-speed crash on the descent from Monteaperti. Despite having to stop a second time to change his bike, he quickly made his way back to Pidcock, who eventually waited for him. As the duo reached Colle Pinzuto for the final time with 19 kilometres from the finish, Pogačar attacked and successfully dropped Pidcock to defend his title and win the race for a third time, tyingFabian Cancellara's record for the most number of victories in the race.[149] 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.[150] In March, Pogačar announced that he would enterParis–Roubaix for the first time.[151]
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.[152]
Comparisons withEddy Merckx have been made throughout Pogačar's career.Cyrille Guimard, a former rival of Merckx and adirecteur sportif of multiple former Tour champions, claimed in 2020 that Pogačar was above the level of both Merckx andHinault.[153] During the 2021 Tour de France, after Pogačar's victory on stage 8 where he took the yellow jersey and gained over 3 minutes on the other general classification contenders, former Tour winnerJoop Zoetemelk compared the young Slovenian to Merckx.[154] By the end of the Tour, which Pogačar won by over 5 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."[155]
Following Pogačar's victory at the2021 Il Lombardia, Merckx noted that while many cyclists had been called "the new Merckx," Pogačar was the first to truly fulfill that promise based on his accomplishments.[156]Ernesto Colnago expressed similar thoughts, saying that in his view Pogačar will be "the only one following Eddy Merckx" in cycling history.[157]
During Pogačar's historic 2024 season, the comparisons intensified. After his win in the2024 Giro d'Italia, 5-time Tour winner Bernard Hinault stated "he’s like me and Merckx," citing Pogačar's dominance and racing style.[158] After the Tour, the Spanish newspaperEl País proclaimed: "Tadej Pogačar is the Cannibal 2".[159] Following the World Championships, where Pogačar went solo for the final 100 km to win, Merckx himself proclaimed toL'Équipe "It’s obvious that he is now above me."[160][161] However, Merckx subsequently clarified that he was referring specifically to the World Championships performance, and doesn't believe Pogačar is superior to him yet.[162][163]
Tadej was born inKomenda but grew up in nearbyKlanec, 20 km north of the Slovenian capital ofLjubljana. 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.
Pogačar lives in Monaco with his partner, fellow Slovenian professional cyclistUrška Žigart.[164] They became engaged in September 2021.[165]
Time trial, National Junior Championships
OverallGiro della Lunigiana
Points classification
Road race,UEC European Junior Championships
Young rider classification Young rider classificationRoad raceTime trial
OverallTour de l'Avenir OverallGrand Prix Priessnitz spa
Mountains classification Young rider classification OverallGiro del Friuli-Venezia Giulia Young rider classification Young rider classificationTime trial, National Championships OverallTour of California Young rider classification OverallVolta ao Algarve Young rider classificationYoung rider classification Young rider classification
Young rider classificationTime trial OverallTour de FranceMountains classificationYoung rider classification OverallVolta a la Comunitat Valenciana Young rider classification Young rider classification OverallTour de FranceMountains classificationYoung rider classification
OverallTirreno–Adriatico Mountains classification Young rider classification
OverallUAE Tour Young rider classification
OverallTour of Slovenia Mountains classification
Road race,Olympic Games OverallTirreno–Adriatico
Points classification Young rider classification OverallUAE Tour Young rider classification OverallTour of Slovenia Points classificationYoung rider classification after Stages 6–10Road raceTime trial
OverallParis–Nice
Points classification Young rider classification OverallVuelta a Andalucía Points classificationYoung rider classification
Road race,UCI World Championships
Road race,UCI World Championships OverallTour de France after Stages 11–18
Combativity award Stage 11
OverallGiro d'ItaliaMountains classification
OverallVolta a Catalunya
Points classification
Mountains classification OverallUAE Tour| Grand Tour general classification results | ||||||||
| Grand Tour | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giro d'Italia | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | |
| Tour de France | — | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Vuelta a España | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Major stage race general classification results | ||||||||
| Race | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
| Paris–Nice | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | |
| Tirreno–Adriatico | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Volta a Catalunya | — | NH | — | — | — | 1 | — | |
| Tour of the Basque Country | 6 | 3 | — | — | — | — | ||
| Tour de Romandie | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
 Critérium du Dauphiné | — | 4 | — | — | — | — | ||
| Tour de Suisse | — | NH | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Monument | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milan–San Remo | — | 12 | — | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Tour of Flanders | — | — | — | 4 | 1 | — | 1 |
| Paris–Roubaix | — | NH | — | — | — | — | |
| Liège–Bastogne–Liège | 18 | 3 | 1 | — | DNF | 1 | |
| Giro di Lombardia | — | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Classic | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
| Strade Bianche | 30 | 13 | 7 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 |
| Milano–Torino | — | — | 4 | — | — | — | — |
| E3 Saxo Bank Classic | — | NH | — | — | 3 | — | — |
| Dwars door Vlaanderen | — | — | 10 | — | — | — | |
| Amstel Gold Race | DNF | — | — | 1 | — | ||
| La Flèche Wallonne | 53 | 9 | — | 12 | 1 | — | |
| Clásica de San Sebastián | DNF | NH | — | DNF | — | — | |
| Bretagne Classic | — | — | DNF | 89 | — | — | |
| Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec | — | Not held | 24 | — | 7 | ||
| Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal | — | 1 | — | 1 | |||
| Giro dell'Emilia | — | — | DNF | 2 | 2 | 1 | |
| Tre Valli Varesine | — | NH | 3 | 1 | 5 | NR | |
| Event | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Olympic Games | Road race | Not held | 3 | Not held | — | NH | ||||
| Time trial | — | — | ||||||||
| World Championships | Road race | — | — | 18 | 33 | 37 | 19 | 3 | 1 | |
| Time trial | — | — | — | — | 10 | 6 | 21 | — | ||
 European Championships | Road race | — | — | — | — | 5 | — | — | — | |
| Time trial | — | — | — | — | 12 | — | — | — | ||
| National Championships | Road race | — | 6 | 7 | 2 | 5 | — | 1 | — | |
| Time trial | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | — | 1 | — | ||
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
| NH | Not Held |
| NR | No result |
| IP | In progress |
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National ChampionshipsHo 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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| UCI Road World Champions –Men's road race | |
|---|---|
| 1927–1938 |
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| 1946–1959 |
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| 1960–1979 |
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| 1980–1999 |
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| 2000–2019 |
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| 2020–2039 | |
| UCI Road World Cup | |
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| UCI ProTour |
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| UCI World Tour | |
| UCI World Ranking |
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| International | |
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