As the countdown to the 2024 season gathers pace, Cyclingnews looks at some of the key storylines that will define the coming year in cycling.
When it comes to a discussion of Tadej Pogačar’s possible goals for the 2024 season, there are two key factors.
First, his versatility and consistency mean that literally any race on the calendar could be an objective. Second, at just 25, Pogačar has all the time in the world to try to win every race he wants to.
After all, this is the rider who triumphed in his first event of the 2023 season, the Jaén Classic on the rutted shale-tracks of southern Andalusia, and in his final event of the season at Il Lombardia.
Those races bookended a season where he showcased his gifts at Paris-Nice and the Tour de France, at Flèche Wallonne and the Tour of Flanders. Time and again, he singlehandedly upended the idea that shining in such a broad variety of races simply can’t be done.
Pogačar’s ability to choose multiple options in the future is hugely boosted by his age. At the Saitama criterium teammate Davide Formolo pointed out that the Japanese exhibition race would be the last time he would wear the Tour de France best young rider’s jersey.
As of 2024, Pogačar, after turning 25 on September 21st, will finally no longer be eligible for the Tour de France maillot blanc. It was a timely reminder of how much he has already achieved already in his career.
So where does Pogačar go from here?
Asked a few weeks ago for a bucket list of events he’d like to win at least once before his career ends, Pogačar named the Giro d’Italia, the Vuelta a España and the Worlds Championships.
But, as he’s also pointed out, the Tour de France is the one event that matters the most to sponsors. So even if his own wish-list no longer revolves around July – a month in which he revealed, intriguingly, that he is usually not at his best – other factors logically come into play.
When it comes to working out what Pogačar might do in 2024, perhaps the best strategy would be to start by including the events where the opportunities are – even for Pogačar – more limited than usual. The two events that do seem most likely to figure on his programme are the Paris Olympic Games and the World Championships.
The road race routes in Paris on August 4 and in Zurich on September 29 are both hilly and technical and, as such, Pogačar would be in his element. Of the two courses, Zurich is the more demanding and this makes the Worlds…
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