Tadej Pogacar's purple shorts made illegal! Giro d'Italia leader threatened with disqualification
Cycling
Giro d'Italia organizers gave Tadej Pogacar shorts with a very noticeable colour on stage 3. After the UAE Team Emirates put on the pink jersey, he was also offered grenade-coloured shorts in tribute of the city of Torino and it's football team - in which many players passed away in 1949 on a plane crash. But the UCI was quick to ban this from happening in the space of only hours.
At the start of stage 4 Pogacar was back to black shorts, as expected taking into consideration his team's original attire. Yesterday's specific decision was explained by RCS Sport direction Paulo Bellino:
“We have made a change. Since this year we have made a Pink Jersey with grenade inserts, which recall the Grande Partenza on May 4th and there are various grenade inserts throughout the jersey, in my opinion, absolutely, as per the regulations," he told Eurosport.
"The colors match, because there are colors that recall. We therefore changed the bodysuit with grenade shorts that match the back where the 107 is and some internal colors. We did it with Castelli, who is our sponsor, who in my opinion did a wonderful job," he argued.
"It is clear that it is a little different from the past, but in my opinion, in Castelli's opinion, we are perfectly compliant with the regulation, which talks about harmonization and racing. And, in my opinion, the two colors match and harmonize together."
According to Cyclingnews not only was the equipment forbidden, but on Monday night UAE Team Emirates were warned not to use it, under the threat of disqualifying the race leader himself from the race.
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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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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🆚 💗 The peloton against the Maglia Rosa. It took everything for the fast men of the #GirodItalia to compete for the win in Fossano, but the sprinters prevailed. ⏪ The @Continentaltire Ultimo Kilometro ⤵️ #Continental #ContinentalItalia #SafetySponsorOfTheRoad
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