"Giro, Tour and Vuelta in the same year? It can be done" - Tadej Pogacar confesses Grand Tour hat-trick is in his thoughts
Cycling
Given his form across 2024, seemingly nothing is out of reach for Tadej Pogacar. Some speculated that following his historic Grand Tour double at the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France this year, he may even attempt the Vuelta a Espana. Whilst that didn't happen this year, the Slovenian isn't adverse to the idea in future.
“I thought about doing La Vuelta too," he admits in conversation with La Gazzetta dello Sport. "But the Olympic Games were on and I did not participate because I had to recover. Giro d'Italia, Tour and Vuelta in the same year? It can be done, but you have to plan the season and organize it to arrive in good condition. Racing to win a Grand Tour is very different from racing just to finish it. I am not thinking about that now, but one year I might do it.”
The closest anyone has come to such a feat is probably Chris Froome, who at one point held all three leaders jerseys having won the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana in 2017, following that up with a Maglia Rosa victory at the Giro d'Italia in 2018. Winning all of the three-week stage races in the same calendar year remains a feat untouched in the annals of cycling history though.
“I don’t like to compare myself to cyclists of the past, also because I know little about their history. I wasn’t even born. I just follow my own path, creating my own history and living in the present moment without worrying about the past and history," Pogacar adds. "I never had an idol, when I was young I wasn’t interested in cycling. I started and it was the time of Alberto Contador and the Schlecks. I like to watch the races, but more from afar than when they reach the finish line.”
Yeah but that would mean sacrificing the rainbow jersey, which I don't think he's willing to do.
This was the year to do it. He has left it to chance that he won't crash out of one of the three in the coming years. He doesn't have an Olympic gold medal yet and he could have had the Olympic gold TT after he trounced Remco in the final TdeF TT. However such dominance might raise questions of doping.
If he we're able to pull this off it would make him the default GOAT of pro cycling.
That's when I finally, after 60 years, give up on professional cycling.
of course he will try this, winning all 5 monuments and the GT trifecta is all he has left for his legacy.
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- He attacked Pogi after he saw him crashed and then Connor Swift stopped for quit sometime. He slow when he can't take some more time and Pogi blitztering his pace like a mad man to catch Swift then drop him after and that's the time he realized he will NOT beat Pogi in all races even he crashed.
James2631809-03-2025 - He already is the GOAT. Merckx rode decades ago when the sport was far less professional and the opposition weaker. You might as well say Djokovic is approaching Rod Laver or Messi is getting near to Stanley Matthews. If a sport advances and you are at the top, you are the GOAT.Renz09-03-2025
- Excellent point about when it’s too late to respond. I was watching the ‘23 Flanders race again, and the break, the bridge, and Mads Peterson all did the right thing. Not enough, but still, the attempt was the thing. I love watching Pogacar race, but I am really hoping for more of that kind of early hard attack in the coming months.RidesHills09-03-2025
- Pure class and nice for him to wait. After Tadej shared some liquids earlier. And besides Tadej took out that gap pretty instantly. No offense to Pidcock but he sat up at the top of a climb with the bridge over was obvious. And this is meant as no offense.mij09-03-2025
- What a ride! 💪
leedorney09-03-2025 - Pure classCrashjames08-03-2025
- If you have a hack to watch it on TV ;-)Mistermaumau08-03-2025
- Katalin Szőke, how many media do you think ever got that right? In Britain, you’re asking for trouble to register your kids’ name with an accent, in France, even something as simple as á is refused as their software doesn’t have it.Mistermaumau08-03-2025
- Awesome job today and I hope you can have a lot opportunities! Forza, Connor!
maria2024202408-03-2025 - Sorry, but a lot of cyclists can testify that there is truth to this training/race day paradox.Mistermaumau08-03-2025