A new “Cannibal” … Has Tadej Pogacar gone for a long reign?

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“He’s the new Cannibal!” »Even in his wildest dreams Tadej Pogacar surely did not expect such a compliment. Friday, the future double winner of the Tour de France was quite simply dubbed by the real “Cannibal”: The living legend of cycling Eddy Merckx. It must be said that the young Slovenian is just 22 years old to hit the bike world very hard. After a first surprise and snatch victory on the Grande Boucle last year, “Tamau Pogi” (a sort of leprechaun in Slovenian) by his nickname literally crushed this 108th edition.

This Saturday during the last time trial between Libourne and Saint-Emilion, the leader of the UAE Team Emirates even allowed himself to relax the machine a little to admire the magnificent vineyards of Bordeaux. He finished 8th in this lap, 57 seconds behind the winner of the day Wout Van Aert. Anecdotal for a runner who will once again raise his arms on the Champs Elysées this Sunday with more than five minutes ahead of his runner-up, Jonas Vingegaard. And like last year, he will do it three times during the presentation of the yellow jersey but also that of the best youngster and the best climber. A real raid!

For the moment, he “does not think about the record”

“Maybe the domination of his team is not the same as Ineos or Jumbo but after on the physical level, he is a leg above everyone and I think it has been seen”, admits Guillaume Martin, first French in the general classification with a nice 8th place. This year, there really wasn’t much to face Tadej Pogacar. In three weeks of racing, he showed only one moment of weakness in the double ascent of Mont Ventoux and many still wonder if it was not voluntary on his part.

One thing is certain, many observers see its success as the start of a new era. In the first place Eddy Merckx for whom “Tadej Pogacar surely left to win more than five Laps” and beat his record of victory of the Grand Boucle that the “Cannibal” holds with Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain. The main interested party does not validate this hypothesis:

“I don’t think about the record. I just want to enjoy the moment. I don’t believe there is a Pogacar era. But rather a whole generation has emerged. We should see some great battles in the coming decade with riders like Egan Bernal, Wout Van Aert, Remco Evenpoel, Mathieu van der Poel, Jonas Vingegaard… ”

It is not false especially that they were a few absent during this edition (Bernal and Evenpoel) and his compatriot and main opponent Primoz Roglic quickly gave up this year. Finally, as Bernard Thevenet reminds us, “in the recent history of the Tour, I do not know of a winner who has been helped so much by his competitors”. But would that have really been enough to destabilize the champion of Slovenia? Not sure at all!

Tadej Pogacar, the yellow jersey of the Tour de France. – Philippe LOPEZ / AFP

“He’s a super talented boy, explains Matej Mohoric, double stage winner on this Tour de France and close friend, he has no weak point, he has all the qualities of a very good rider. Tadej is different for me. For example, I am only good on the flat and the average editing, he is good everywhere. This is his strength. “And his victories over Tirreno-Adriatico and Liège-Bastogne-Liège this year prove it. It is therefore difficult to find a weak point at the sporting level in Pogacar. And in addition according to his runner-up on this Tour, Jonas Vingegaard, “he’s a really nice guy”. So what could derail the Pogacar machine in the future?

Suspicions to be dispelled

His opponents of course, but perhaps also the environment around him and his performance. Throughout these three weeks, the suspicion grew stronger and stronger. These doubts are reminiscent of the darkest hours of cycling. His mother, Marteja Pogacar, did not hide her anger this Saturday at the microphone of RMC Sport: ” I am very touched. I wonder why he is so criticized. With my husband, we have always tried to raise honest and sincere children. I’ve said it before: if he were to start doping, he would stop. I know Tadej, if he took a banned substance, wouldn’t be happy to win. It is against his values ​​and his morals. “

Between suspicions about some people around him and mechanical doping with, according to the Swiss newspaper Time riders from the peloton who themselves investigate a strange noise on certain bikes, including those of the yellow jersey team, he will have to be solid in the face of the pressure. “When someone does not believe in me, I always try to prove that he is wrong, answers Tadej Pogacar, we have many controls to prove the doubters wrong. I think what happened is a thing of the past. The new cycling is a much more beautiful sport than before. »Especially when you win! In any case, the new star of world cycling “has no specific goals” in his career. “Of course I want to win everything but the most important thing for me is to be myself. “





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