The cycling world is still in shock after Tadej Pogacar‘s magnificent solo at the UCI Road Racing World Championships in Switzerland. The papers are singing the Slovenian’s praises, comparing his performance to some of the most mythical moments in cycling history.
What we witnessed on Sunday was unique, something the French newspaper was eager to emphasize. “Let’s forget history, kilometers, strategies for a moment, and let’s try to hold on to a piece of this pure madness, this fury, because it’s rare to experience something that comes so close to absolute beauty, to the essence of cycling in general, and to a world championship in particular.”
Thanks to an early attack, the Slovenian put his competitors in a stranglehold. “Tadej Pogacar definitely went for their throats before they could even pull out their pocketknives, but how could Remco Evenepoel and Mathieu van der Poel think they could give him even a meter of freedom? The Belgian admitted after the finish that he thought it was a suicide mission.”
But it certainly wasn’t a suicide mission. “Pogacar took the risk of leaping into the void, where his rivals were unprepared, which cost them the victory. They then tried in vain to keep going, but the toughness of the route broke the remaining manpower. They no longer had the resources to come back, and from there, it was every man for himself, which ruined any collaboration.”
“In Switzerland, after a fierce battle, he turned the best riders in the world into slaves. Soon, there will be no more references to the past, no more comparisons. The story now belongs to him,” the French outlet concluded its praise.
In a more in-depth analysis, L’Équipe compared the performance to other mythical solo rides in cycling history. Names like Fausto Coppi and Eddy Merckx naturally came up, but at a world championship, only three names have achieved a similar feat. Vittorio Adorni controlled the 1968 World Championships after a 90-kilometer solo break, but that was after a breakaway designed to take down the big favorite, Merckx. Bernard Hinault won in 1980 after a 150-kilometer attack, but he wasn’t completely alone, and the conditions in Sallanches were so tough that only fifteen riders finished.
A top favorite showing their heels to everyone from such a distance out from the finish and in this way, that has never happened at a world championship. Well, almost never. Five years ago, Annemiek van Vleuten decided to go solo 104 kilometers from the finish. No one managed to catch up to the Dutchwoman, and she crossed the finish in Harrogate with more than a two-minute lead. The fact that Pogi’s achievement can only be compared to this extraordinary ordeal speaks volumes.
Eddy Merckx said Pogacar must be crazy to attack from so far out. “Yes, but a brilliant kind of crazy person!” raved a lyrical La Gazzetta. “Only Tadej Pogacar could devise an attack from so far out. But the one we’ve always regarded as the most senior modern champion has a courage even greater than his ambitions. Tadej is not only an absolute champion but the only one in cycling who can win everything, from Milan-San Remo to the Tour of Lombardy.”
The Italian newspaper saw that great champions Evenepoel and Van der Poel simply fell short. “The last two world champions have the same penchant for spectacular performances as Tadej, but at that moment, they too thought it was a gamble, madness. They were two giants who were smaller than Pogacar. We had the impression that Tadej managed his efforts to maintain a reassuring margin without ever going overboard.”
Comparisons are immediately made to Coppi, Hinault and Merckx. “But all the references, all the details of this performance tell us that Pogacar’s achievement is already legendary. At 26, Tadej has already won three Tours, a Giro d’Italia and monuments like Flanders, Liège and Lombardy. The world championship was a natural next step in his remarkable journey.”
