If there is something in particular about the Tour de France in recent years, it is that two riders from Slovenia, Tadel Pogacar and Primoz Roglica country that has very little history in world cycling, have fought for the title and this year it is seen that it will not be the exception.
Pogacar vs. Roglic
Pogacar is the one that has maintained regularity and supremacy over a Roglic that he has not been able to with his compatriot, because twice he has left him out of focus.
The talented cyclist from the UAE Emirates arrives at the Tour, which starts in Copenhagen, with a 13-kilometer time trial, as the top favorite, the unbeatable, for whom everyone will look for his breaking point, and one of them will be Roglic.
At 23 years old, Pogacar arrives at his fourth major in the best possible conditions. Twice he has ridden the Tour and both times he has beaten his rivals; 2020 and 2021, and with more than enough merit.
Arrives, this time, with 4,121 kilometers and 24 days of competition, enough to lead the favoritism in the French competition.
He has been champion of the UAE Tour, a test in which he won two stages. Then he won the Italian classic Strade Bianche, won two stages and the general of the Tirreno-Adriatico, was fifth in Milano San Remo and was the Tour of Slovenia champion, which he dominated at will with two partial victories.
This time he has tried to put together a strong team, but suffered a key loss due to covid-19. The absence of Matteo Trentin should be felt, as he was the key man on the flat and on the pavé day.
His replacement was Marc Hirschi, more to fill a gap than anything else, as his level has not been the best this year. He was the substitute. The Achilles heel of the current champion in this, that there are better teams, but that is how they have won in the last two years.
Hard battle
Roglic, for his part, arrives with blood in his eye. He has not been able to beat Pogacar, victory in the Tour has been elusive, since he was 38 in 2017, fourth a year later, second in 2020 and last year he had to retire after falling in the ninth stage, due to a fall that left him with consequences.
The 32-year-old Jumbo Visma rider takes on the Tour in almost the same conditions as his compatriot, since up until today and this season he has covered 4,127 kilometers and 26 days of competition.
The results do little to help. An injury to his right knee has not allowed him to make his prelude to the Tour in the best way. However, he was third in Paris-Nice, eighth in the Basque Country, test in which the pain in the extremity began, and he won the Criteiurm Dauphiné, a race in which he had rivals of little weight.
Although there are doubts about his level, about his knee health, he has a great team. Wout van Aert and Jonas Vingegaard, second last year, can give him a hand and even fight Pogacar.
Especially Vingegaard, who can fight for the title again, as he did last year, so the Jumbo has the power not only in Roglic, but in the other two riders named.
“We’re a strong team with a lot of good individuals. With all the time we’ve been working together, doing it the best way we can, we think we can beat him,” Roglic said, and he’s right about that.
Pogacar has beaten them ‘alone’, in head-to-head he has finished them off, and this year that seems to be the watchword. It is known that in heads-up play, if it’s right, it’s unbeatable, that’s why strategies and second cards will be key and Jumbo has the upper hand in that.
Roglic is strong against the clock, he climbs in the best way in the mountains, but Pogacar does the stages well against the clock and is a sensational climber, that is why it is necessary to fight him in another way and in that Roglic and the Jumbo, in addition to the Ineos by Daniel Martínez, they must already have the antidote.
Lisandro Rengifo
Editor of THE TIME
@lisandroabel
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