"He must’ve signed 800,000 autographs and posed for 500,000 selfies!" - Matteo Trentin saw Tadej Pogacar's star-power first hand in Slovenia

For all his palmarès — four Tours de France, multiple monuments, and the rainbow jersey — Tadej Pogacar remains, by all accounts, remarkably grounded. But if you wanted a glimpse of the magnitude of his fame, you only had to be in Komenda, Slovenia, last weekend.

“It was unreal,” recalls Matteo Trentin, one of eight high-profile riders invited to Pogacar’s annual criterium in conversation with Bici.Pro. “I barely spoke to him — not because he was avoiding anyone, but because he was mobbed the entire time. He must’ve signed 800,000 autographs and done 500,000 selfies! That’s cycling. Where else do you get that close to your heroes, for free?”

The seventh edition of the Tadej Pogacar Criterium was more than just a local festival. Postponed from its usual June slot due to Pogacar’s Tour schedule, the 2025 edition doubled as a celebration of his fourth Tour de France victory — and his first in the rainbow bands. It turned the sleepy Slovenian town into a who’s who of top-tier talent and a celebration of cycling’s grassroots connection.

Komenda, a small town just north of Ljubljana, played host to an event that was part youth development showcase, part elite showdown, and part village fair. From mid-afternoon, races cycled through the youth categories: U15s, U17s, juniors, elite women — and finally, just before sunset, the men’s elite field.

Alongside Pogacar and Trentin were World Tour regulars like Matej Mohoric, Luka Mezgec, and Matevz Govekar, as well as Tim Wellens and Pavel Sivakov from Pogacar’s UAE Team Emirates - XRG. Local Continental teams such as Adria Mobil and several development squads ensured the racing was anything but soft. “It was full gas from the first lap,” Trentin recalled. “The juniors and Conti guys lit it up immediately. The first 15 laps — we were on the limit. It was messy, hard, and chaotic, just how a proper crit should be. They only eased off a little towards the end.”

The 1-kilometre circuit wound through Komenda’s narrow streets, taking in the town square, a small church, and finishing on a short kicker that added spice to the closing laps. “It’s a tiny town, but the circuit was really fun,” Trentin said. “We started at sunset, and heading back towards the finish, the sun was right in our faces. You literally couldn’t see a thing. It wasn’t easy.”

For all the wattage on display, the true strength of the event was its accessibility. Thousands lined the barriers. Slovenians travelled from across the country, and cycling fans from Italy, Austria, Germany, and even Croatia made the trip — some detouring from summer holidays on the Istrian coast to catch a glimpse of the World Champion at full tilt. “That’s the magic of cycling,” Trentin said. “In what other sport do you see the very best — the Tour winner, the World Champion — racing a metre from you, for free? You don’t get that in football or Formula 1. You might even get a high five. That’s what makes our sport special.”

Despite the festive setting, Trentin made clear that the legs had to be ready. He’d been planning to arrive in Komenda the day before to join a pre-criterium training ride with the others, but a family hiccup saw him arrive late. “So I trained on the way there instead. And good thing I did, because once the flag dropped, it was full-on. You couldn’t bluff your way through this one.”

The post-race vibe, though, was pure off-season calm. After the podiums, beers were shared, families reunited, and the World Tour contingent slipped back to the hotel together, still buzzing from a day that was equal parts intensity and intimacy.

Trentin, now racing with the Tudor Pro Cycling Team, was struck by Pogacar’s poise amid the chaos. Just weeks after a taxing Tour — mentally more than physically, some suggested — the Slovenian looked refreshed.

“He seemed totally fine — still the same Tadej. Calm, smiling, relaxed. He looked happy to be there and happy to give back. He wasn’t going through the motions — he was soaking it up.”

Pogacar will return to racing at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal on 12th September, while Trentin’s own comeback kicks off with the Hamburg Cyclassics this weekend. But for both riders, the Komenda crit offered something more than a training effort or a sponsor obligation. It was a moment of reconnection — with fans, with fellow pros, and with the reason they race in the first place.

“It was a proper mess — a beautiful chaos,” Trentin smiled. “But that’s what made it great.”