“Probably I will be at the European Championship, I’m already counting the years that separate me…” says Tadej Pogacar

After the post-Tour de France break and holiday, Tadej Pogačar returned to racing and spoke to the press yesterday during his criterium in Komenda, Slovenia. On this occasion, the world champion answered questions, clarifying some aspects of the last Tour, talking about retirement (already mentioned to L’Équipe a few weeks ago), and also about his plans for the end of the season.

Of course, in all this, Tadej won the criterium, which also featured other prominent riders such as Luka Mezgec, Matej Mohorič, Matevž Govekar, Matteo Trentin, Tim Wellens, and Pavel Sivakov (the latter all current or former teammates). Here are his words:

ON THE TOUR DE FRANCE AND BEYOND – “I’m happy to be back home, to see my friends, neighbours, and family. It’s true that sometimes I wish I were a bit less famous, sometimes taking photos and signing autographs is tiring, sometimes a bit less so, but I try to please everyone. Anyone can have an off day. You can’t expect me to be beaming with happiness for all 21 stages. The Tour was really tough, one of the most difficult I’ve ever raced; everyone who fought for the general classification can confirm it. But now I’ve rested, I’ve ‘reset’ myself, and I’m ready for new battles.”

ON RETIREMENT – “The fact is that I’m already counting the years until retirement. I started winning early, and there can also be negative results — I’m ready for anything. I’ll probably race a few more Tours, although you can never be 100% sure you’ll take part. The Tour is the most important race, and I doubt the team will leave me at home in the coming years.”

ON THE RACES IN CANADA – “We know that Montreal suits me better, but that doesn’t mean I won’t try to win in Quebec as well. This year they’ve changed the course a bit: now it’s easier, but the finish is harder, so we’ll try to win there too. Not necessarily me — we have a few other riders who could be suited to this finish, particularly Jhonathan Narváez.”

ON THE END OF THE SEASON – “According to the information we have, this year there will be a European Championship for climbers, so I’ll probably be there. It’s similar to one of the spring races Juan Ayuso won this year. But this European Championship probably means I won’t be able to take part in other Italian classics except for Il Lombardia.”

Dai un’occhiata alle altre notizie uscite qui su Universo Sportivo e rimanete aggiornati sui social con Universo Calcistico.