On Thursday night, the Road World Championships press pack decamped 30km south of Zürich to the city of Cham on the northern shore of Lake Zug. In generations previous, this was the form of pilgrimage reserved for audiences with the normal powers like Italy and Belgium, however the panorama of biking has shifted within the 2020s.
These days, the epicentre is in Slovenia. Tadej Pogačar and Primož Roglič have made certain of that. Between them, they’ve swept this season’s Grand Tours, and on Sunday, all eyes are on Pogačar as he appears to be like to emulate Eddy Merckx and Stephen Roche by finishing the Triple Crown of Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and Worlds.
On arriving at Slovenia’s base on the OYM Centre, a multi-sports advanced on the outskirts of Cham, journalists had been ushered right into a banked auditorium to await the arrival of Pogačar and Roglič. Before the press convention acquired underway, the founding father of the centre, one Dr Hans-Peter Strebel offered a type of obscure infomercial about his enterprise earlier than the star turns lastly took centre stage.
Like in Imola in 2020, the practicalities of Roglič and Pogačar’s co-existence within the Slovenian staff has been the topic of some intrigue forward of the race. As of their pre-race video convention webinar in Italy 4 years in the past, nonetheless, there was solely mutual bonhomie on present on Thursday night, as they smiled and shrugged their means a half-hour press convention, talking first in Slovenian after which in English.
In an interview with state broadcaster RTV Slovenija this week, Roglič had said that he had “nothing to lose” in Sunday’s race, including that he wouldn’t have “ten extra World Championships forward”. On Thursday night, nonetheless, Roglič breezily acknowledged that one-day racing was a sphere higher suited to his compatriot than to him.
“Looking to myself and Tadej, he’s profitable all of the one-day races, he is without doubt one of the finest ones at this. Myself, I simply do a few them a 12 months,” Roglič stated. “It’s a pleasant problem, and the problem is to get one of the best out with the blokes. On paper, now we have sturdy names, however I want to be sturdy on the highway. That’s the vital one.”
Asked what would occur if he and Pogačar discovered themselves alone collectively on the head of the race within the finale, Roglič shrugged playfully. “I assume one shall be first and one shall be second, I don’t know,” he stated. “We will play a recreation, eh.”
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Pogačar smiled as he took up the microphone: “Yeah, rock, paper, scissors, it’s the usual protocol.”
Slovenia shall be with out Matej Mohorič, who withdrew this week with a wrist harm, however their standing as a superpower is underlined by the very fact they’ve certified a full complement of eight riders for Sunday’s race. Roglič is a harmful outsider, regardless of his struggles in final weekend’s time trial, however Pogačar is definitely the alpha and omega of nationwide coach Uroš Murn’s plans for these Worlds.
“A rainbow jersey is one thing actually particular in biking, probably the most distinctive jersey,” Pogačar stated. “Everybody desires it, I might guess. You put on all of it 12 months spherical and it defines you as one of the best rider on this planet. It’s a giant aim for me for the final couple of years. I’ll attempt for it this 12 months and if not, then within the subsequent couple of years.”
Pogačar has lined up on the Worlds in every of his 5 skilled seasons, however his report within the race is curiously underwhelming. Prior to his bronze medal in Glasgow final 12 months, the most important impression he made on the occasion got here in Imola, when he launched a daring assault on the penultimate lap in a 12 months when Roglič was clearly Slovenia’s most well-liked possibility.
“Last 12 months in Glasgow, I need to say it was one of many hardest races I’ve ever accomplished,” Pogačar stated. “It was not a parcours actually suited to me, it was too explosive within the final three hours of racing, and I used to be exhausted after the race. This 12 months is a lot better, so let’s see what this race holds.”
2024
Pogačar was working on fumes by the point he reached the Glasgow Worlds, some extent hammered house by his lacklustre displaying within the time trial that adopted. His 2023 marketing campaign was attempting one after the crash that pressured him out of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and he had arrived in Scotland on the again of one other bruising Tour defeat to Jonas Vingegaard.
2024, against this, has been the 12 months the place just about all the pieces Pogačar has tried has come off. The closest factor to a setback got here when Milan-San Remo once more eluded his grasp in March. Since then, he has put collectively (one other) season for the ages, annexing the primary Giro-Tour double since 1998 whereas racking up half a dozen stage wins in every race.
Pogačar’s final outing earlier than this Worlds was an ominous solo victory on the Grand Prix de Montréal, a race with an identical altitude achieve to Sunday’s important occasion, a 274km race that concludes with seven laps of an arduous 27km circuit round Zürich.
“It’s a tough parcours. None of the climbs are actually lengthy, however it’s not straight downhill after the climbs so there’s not a number of time to get well,” Pogačar stated.
“I can see a number of eventualities, as a result of there’s a number of house for long-range assaults and to make the race onerous.
“It’s onerous to say if the primary onerous climb [Zürichbergstrasse] is hard sufficient to make the distinction. But I believe in the long run the distinction will come from the size of the race and the way onerous it’s.”
Pogačar warned towards counting out the defending champion Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands) on this rugged course – “I noticed someplace he misplaced 1.5kg” – and he gently dismissed the concept that he may want to complete alone to win the rainbow jersey: “Sprinting after 274k with a lot elevation accomplished, that’s completely totally different.”
Remco Evenepoel’s title inevitably cropped up. While Pogačar is chasing the Triple Crown, the Belgian is searching for to finish a Quadruple of his personal. Evenepoel claimed each gold medals on the Paris 2024 Olympics and he strains up as Pogačar’s probably challenger right here after defending his time trial world title final weekend.
“He seemed tremendous good on the TT, he dealt with the strain fairly good too, with the chain drop on the beginning line and from what I learn he didn’t have energy,” Pogačar stated. “The TT is his self-discipline the place he shines one of the best, I believe. But Sunday is a unique recreation.”
Once the press convention formalities had ended, Pogačar moved onto the advertising and marketing recreation, displaying off the customized Colnago bike he’ll trip on Sunday, the multicoloured paint job designed to showcase his lengthy listing of successes. He smiled when it was put to him {that a} rainbow jersey on Sunday can be good enterprise for his bike provider. “We all make good cash then, eh,” he stated.
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