"Stands above me now"
Eddy Merckx bows to Tadej Pogacar
Cycling legend Eddy Merckx (79) has bowed to Tadej Pogacar. "It is obvious that he is now above me. I already thought that a little bit inside me when I saw what he did at the last Tour de France, but tonight there is no longer any doubt," the 79-year-old told the French sports daily "L'Équipe" on Sunday after Pogacar's victory at the Road Cycling World Championships in Zurich.
The Slovenian Pogacar is the third professional cyclist after the Belgian Merckx (1974) and the Irishman Stephen Roche (1987) to celebrate victories in two major national tours and the World Championships in one year. "Of course you can never compare the times, but we are dealing with an incredible rider here," praised Merckx. "I haven't attacked 100 kilometers from the finish in a world championship, but what he did today is unimaginable."
"This is just the beginning"
Pogacar attacked 100 km before the finish in the 273.9 kilometer race and was 34 seconds ahead of the Australian Ben O'Connor at the end of his demonstration of power. Pogacar was "a huge champion" who was "out of the ordinary", said Merckx. Mathieu van der Poel had a similar view. "This is just the beginning. He is stronger than ever," said the dethroned world champion. The Dutchman underlined the popularity of the 26-year-old: "Everyone is happy that he is world champion. He is the best. He will be a worthy world champion."
At least Pogacar admitted that he was on the limit during his absurdly long escape at the end. "I was completely empty. I was already looking cross," he said. On the last lap, the competition reduced their gap, but Pogacar didn't let this upset him: "I had good information about the gaps. Everyone is tired on the last lap."
Pogacar almost overslept his triumphant ride. Fortunately for him, his fiancée Urska Zigart was more alert. "We had to get up quite early and that's not my thing," Pogacar reported. "I had set three alarm clocks. I turned the first one off and just went back to sleep. But then Urska luckily woke me up."
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