"He's a rider who comes along once every fifty years" - Slovenian supertalent doesn't like to compare with Pogacar
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar is still only 26 years old, but Slovenia can already look ahead to a promising future with yet another supertalent coming from this small country. Jakob Omrzel has only just moved up from junior ranks but he immediately won the biggest under-23 stage race of this season (so far) and became a National champion. Not even his idol was able to to do that in his first season.
"I won the Giro Next Gen as a first-year U23 rider, but I wouldn't say I was surprised to win," Omrzel told Wieler Revue with confidence. "I know how hard I worked for it."
His path and that of Pogacar are not all that different. "I got into cycling because of my brother Aljaz. I wanted to do what my older brother did. Yes, just like Pogacar (who got into cycling because of his older brother Tilen, ed.)."
The similarities don't stop there: Pogacar finished fourth at the 2018 Tour of Slovenia at the age of nineteen. Omrzel, who became Slovenian champion this year, did the same earlier this year. He himself cannot deny such a parallel exists. "There are similarities with his story, but he's a rider who comes along once every fifty years."
However Pogacar is still very unique and Omrzel would rather build his own legacy than follow other's. "It's difficult to predict what the future holds for me, but if I stay focused, I'm sure I can achieve great things."
"I've never trained with Pogacar, but I met him once at the World Championships in Glasgow and at a ceremony in Slovenia. I was named Talent of the Year. It's funny: he congratulated me, while in my opinion it should have been the other way around, haha. He's very down-to-earth. There will be more comparisons between him and me in the future, but I know: everyone writes their own story."
Already competitive against pros, Omrzel seems ready to take the step to the pros. Will the team speed things up and promote the Slovenian despite having one more year on his contract with development team? "It's my first year with the Bahrain - Victorious development team. Will I turn pro next year? I want to take it easy. I'm focusing on the next races, and after the season, I'll decide what I'm going to do."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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