“I can see him winning two Grand Tours and becoming world champion" - Jan Bakelants backs Tadej Pogacar to emulate Stephen Roche and Eddy Merckx

Tadej Pogacar has reached a level rarely seen in cycling history throughout 2024. Early season wins at the Volta a Catalunya and Liege-Bastogne-Liege were followed by a first career Giro d'Italia triumph. Now, as the Tour de France enters the third week, the Slovenian is three minutes clear in the fight for the Maillot Jaune.

Just where will Pogacar's season on dominance come to an though? In his rest day press conference, the UAE Team Emirates leader again quashed talk of a historic Grand Tour hat trick at the Vuelta a Espana, saying; "It is 99 percent certain that I will not participate in the Vuelta a Espana this year," but for Sporza analyst Jan Bakelants, a different treble could be on the cards.

"I don't see that happening this season," says Jan Bakelants about the potential lure for Pogacar of becoming the first man ever to win all three Grand Tours in the same calendar year, on the latest episode of Sporza's Vive le Vélo. “What I can see him doing is winning two Grand Tours and becoming world champion, like Stephen Roche.”

In the long and storied history of cycling, only Eddy Merckx in 1974 and the aforementioned Stephan Roche in 1987 have ever managed to win the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France and the road race at the World Championships in the same calendar year. In 2024 of course, there is also the added prize of a potential Olympic gold medal in Paris later this summer.

In Bakelants opinion, an Olympic win would be bigger than a Vuelta win for Pogacar. "Easy, becoming Olympic champion. Winning the three Grand Tours is unique, even if it is 'only' the Vuelta. It is the third of the three," he clarifies. "Up until 4 or 5 Olympiads ago, the piece of gold in the professional peloton did not have the value it does today."