silence is not a part of the constant, ear-ringing din that is the Tour de France but when Tadej Pogacar conceded his fight for the yellow jersey was over, cracking on the slopes of the Col de la Loze, there was a noticeable hush amongst the waiting masses at the finish.
People grimaced as TV cameras focused on the two-time champion getting dropped some 14.3km from the line, and then being paced by UAE Team Emirates teammate Marc Soler up the highest climb of this year’s race (2304m).
The youthfulness from Pogacar’s cherub face, as it had in the time trial the day before, where Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) laid a decisive and heavy blow, had been stripped. The 24-year-old looked ill. Dark circles further highlighted his deeply sunken eyes and starkly contrasted a ghostly pale complexion.
The Slovenian is a popular champion, with everyone, from fans to rival team managers and the press, rating his character and racing style.
“I’m a fan of Pogacar,” said Bora-Hansgrohe team manager Ralph Denk.
“Cycling needs these kinds of stars; they go to the cobblestone races, they go to the Ardennes classics, the Grand Tours, not just picking up the Tour and focusing on the Tour. This is what cycling needs, like back to the 70s and 80s, Eddy Merckx was racing all the big races.”
Pogacar is weighed and measured like no other in the peloton.
When he finished second to Vingegaard at the Tour last year, most questions from the press focused on his perceived loss in what, not dissimilarly to this season, was still a successful race for the all-rounder, who had then won three stages and marked a stint in the yellow jersey. His face lit up momentarily when one reporter focused on that, not the maillot jaune. He won two Tours before his 23rd birthday. He still qualifies for the best young rider classification, noting on the first rest day that this will be the last year that is so. The white jersey remains firmly on his shoulders, as it has since 2020, when he won his first Tour.
It wasn’t a surprise to UAE Team Emirates management or Pogacar’s teammates that he cracked as and when he did on stage 17.
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