After celebrating his fourth consecutive victory at Il Lombardia, Tadej Pogačar took the stage at the Festival di Trento. “I started cycling for fun, never imagining I’d achieve such milestones,” he revealed. He expressed a fleeting thought of competing in the Vuelta after the Giro and Tour, but emphasized that his main focus was the world championship. “I don’t like comparing myself to cyclists from the past,” he said.
Pogačar reiterated his stance: “I prefer to create my own story rather than dwell on history. I wasn’t interested in cycling as a child, even during the era of Contador and Schleck. I enjoy watching races from a distance, especially those long breakaways.”
During the event, there was also a cute segment where he answered questions from young cyclists. He shared that his mother preferred to see him going uphill on TV, saying it’s less dangerous than descending.
With all his victories this year, including both the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France, he pinpointed his standout moment as the stage at the 2024 Tour de France at the Plateau de Beille. “That day, I felt unbeatable,” he recalled, adding that receiving the rainbow jersey was a deeply emotional experience.
Though he considered the Vuelta after his Giro-Tour double—an achievement not seen since Pantani in 1998—he ultimately decided to focus on recovery and training for the world championship. “I realized I wasn’t in peak condition for the Vuelta,” he noted. Reflecting on his world championship performance, he admitted to feeling the pressure as he counted down the final kilometres during a 100km breakaway.
Many are saying that Pogi’s 2024 season is one of the greatest in pro cycling history. But can he do even better in 2025? What’s next, Paris-Roubaix? Team UAE Emirates has not revealed his plans for next year—(since his own season has quite literally just ended)—but who knows at this point…
You can watch the full interview below—depending on how good your Italian is. Pogi does respond in English though, so se non parli italiano, non preoccuparti.
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Canadian Cycling Magazine…