Giro 2024: who can beat Tadej Pogacar in the Tour of Italy?
Announced with great fanfare in Decemberto the delight of tifosi, the unprecedented presence of Tadej Pogacar at the Giro 2024 (from May 4 to 26), was something inevitable. At the start of Venaria Reale (in Piedmont), Saturday May 4, few will consider themselves capable of beating him on the pedal.
Double winner of the Tour de France (in 2020 and 2021), but defeated by Jonas Vingegaard in 2022 and 2023, third in the Vuelta in 2019, it was time for the Slovenian to measure himself on the Italian roads. To continue building his legend and rediscover the taste of final victory in three-week races.
Winner of the Tour of Catalonia, where he won five of the seven stages, “Pogi” also won the Strade Bianche and on Liège-Bastogne-Liège this season. A record that would delight almost any member of the peloton over their entire career, but not Tadej Pogacar, absolute glutton.
As he approaches the Giro, it is difficult to see who could worry him in his quest to bring back the leader’s pink jersey to Rome, and to complete his impressive collection of 70 victories at the age of 25. Review of those who could, perhaps, tickle the Slovenian and undermine his plans to become the first man to complete the Giro-Tour de France double since Marco Pantani in 1998.
At 37 years old, the winner of the 2018 Tour de France no longer has his former legs, that’s undeniable. However, in his team, we still believe in the Welshman’s chances of flying the colors of the British team. Like its sporting director, Steve Cummings, who told Global Cycling Network : “Geraint has been in cycling long enough to know that anything is possible and there is no point in not believing in your chances. Pogacar is a monster, but he’s still beatable, it’s a long race. […] You have to put him under pressure.”
- For more: Elrisala website and for social follow us on Facebook
- Source of information and images “francetvinfo“
