"It's quite a harrowing sight" - Tadej Pogacar documentary pinpoints key quality in UAE rider that led to iconic Tour de France breakthrough
Cycling
The Tadej Pogacar documentary, "Anatomy of a G. O. A. T.", has pinpointed one major characteristic in the Slovenian that proved pivotal in his cycling breakthrough, helping him win the 2020 Tour de France in a dramatic penultimate stage.
The documentary premiered on Saturday afternoon and was split into different chapters, with the second chapter focused on recovery. According to various experts and coaches, the Slovenian's remarkable ability to recover from efforts can be measured in everything from sleep duration to sleep consistency and quality.
For the the UAE rider, his statistics during the 2026 Tour de France saw him outperform his UAE teammates, and likely the majority of other cyclists at the race, in these categories.
In conversation about his recovery, the focus turned to perhaps one of Pogacar's most famous performances - his stage 20 time trial at the 2020 Tour de France.
A mountain race against the clock on the slopes of Les Planche Des Belles Filles, a young Pogacar blew apart the field in the race's final week to take a first-ever yellow jersey and win the Tour - demonstrating an incredible performance after almost three weeks of racing.
"He would show this remarkable ability to recover in the third week of his first Tour de France on the decisive penultimate stage," Matt Stephens said.
Tadej Pogacar
Pogacar's incredible 2020 Tour de France performance
Pogacar biographer Yohann Hautbois said: "We got to the Planche Des Belles Filles time trial and there wasn't much suspense. On the morning of the time trial we didn't think that Pogacar could win.
Of course, Pogacar turned around a 57-second deficit, taking over 30 seconds on a flat segment before the climb itself, where he then began building his own lead as he ultimately rode comfortably into the yellow jersey, denying his compatriot in one of the Tour's most memorable stages.
Hautbois said: "It's quite a harrowing sight, Roglic who is burnt out is completely falling apart."
His 2018-2023 coach, Dr. Iñigo San Millán, said: "Roglic had a time advantage in the general classification and he was wearing the yellow jersey. In a situation like that be more cautious. With Tadej, there's nothing to lose. He uses that factor of surprise."
"Tadej found such power, I don't know where he got it from"
For his family, they couldn't believe his astonishing performance as the live timings showed Pogacar overturning the deficit and building the lead. His mother, Marjetta, explained their reactions as they witnessed her son winning the Tour.
Marjetta said:"I was at home with my husband and my family. We were watching the clock and we just couldn't believe it. My husband and I were saying 'the times must be wrong, it can't be right'.
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"Tadej found such power, I don't know where he got it from. He was really flying to the finish line."
Later in the documentary, it explored his metabolism, bio mechanics and other factors that contributed to the Slovenian's domination of the sport - including a key change that saw him switch coaches from the 2024 season, a move in which took him to another level as he soon won three Tour de France titles in a row.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- 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
- 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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