"At the neutralised start there were already 7 punctures and a couple of broken wheels. We tried to race, but in the descent on the last lap we did I was in second position behind
Alessandro Covi, but we couldn't see where we were going," the Slovenian explains to Cycling Pro Net. "Everybody wanted to stop. It was just a matter of question in which lap someone would crash. Those are the worst crashes when you lose the handlebars. I know a lot of friends from the peloton who had concussions this year. It's something we need to be more careful of in the peloton."
Nevertheless, Pogacar understands things ended far from ideally for the race organisers, who now do not have a potentially mouthwatering battle between some of cycling's biggest names to boast about. "We understand the organisers that they want a race, but in the end the riders made the right decision," Pogacar concludes. "We are sad for the race to not continue, but it's like this. Luckily everybody was reasonable. I could see how heavy it was for the boss of the organisation. There were tears in the eyes. This race means a lot to them, but when you can't race you can't. They understood that immediately. I'm really thankful for that."
