The 5 times Tadej Pogacar was directly beaten in 2024

Tadej Pogacar has won 25 races in 2024 which include Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, World Championships, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Il Lombardia and much more... For many, the best season in cycling history, but the Slovenian was on a few occasions beaten even whilst going all-out. We take a look at five of these moments.

In collaboration with CiclismoAlDia we have taken a look at races where the Slovenian was beaten, ranging from classics to monuments and Grand Tours. Some small moments that came in the way of a 'perfect season' (if you could imagine anything better than what he's already done).

UAE Team Emirates went all-out to win Sanremo this year and had a team full of climbers and classics riders that pushed right from the 'Tre Capi'. The peloton was heavily reduced in Cipressa and the Slovenian attacked the Poggio di Sanremo hard, attempting to make the difference. He almost went over the summit solo but Mathieu van der Poel matched him and later worked to take the race to a sprint where his teammate Jasper Philipsen won. With a strong sprint Pogacar was still third, but he could not take the win in the race that is said to be his biggest goal for the upcoming spring.

Perhaps the most surprising in the list, and it took place on the opening stage of the Volta a Catalunya - where he won four out of seven stages and the overall classification. On day 1 Israel - Premier Tech put on a perfect display of tactics and power. Nick Schultz and Stevie Williams reached the head of the peloton at the entrance of the final kilometer, and purposefully opened a gap so that Schultz would go up the road into the uphill ramp to the line.

After a very tense and explosive finale there was lack of firepower to chase and the Israel duo benefited from this move. Schultz climbed the final ramp at an impressive speed to hold off a sprinting Pogacar behind who was also followed by Schultz' teammate.

Tadej managed to win six stages in the Giro and won the Corsa Rosa being leader from the second stage onwards - where he punctured at the base of Oropa but recovered to still win the stage. What he missed? Winning the first stage and having been leader throughout the race. The finish in Torino was well suited to his skills but UAE was forced into early work due to the large amount of attacks that came in the final kilometers. 

After having burned through the whole team, Pogacar was left unsupported on the final climb. He attacked and made the difference but lacked the explosivity to drop Jhonatan Narváez. The duo joined Max Schachmann out front and went for a three-way sprint, where the INEOS Grenadiers rider outsprinted Pogacar for the victory and first pink jersey of the race.

Pogacar also won six stages at the Tour de France besides the yellow jersey, but it's easy to forget that after stage 11, Jonas Vingegaard was actually on-par when it came to the chances of winning the race. Pogacar made the difference in the first week, but in the Massif Central his goal of taking time on the Dane in an explosive stage backfired.

Pogacar attacked and created the gap on the Pur Mary, but was later chased down by the Dane in the next climb. The duo went head-to-head in an uphill sprint into Le Lioran where surprisingly Vingegaard took a brilliant and emotional win. After this stage the pressure was on Pogacar, but he did deliver once the riders returned to the high mountains.

The last of the races that Tadej Pogacar intended to win and failed to do so was the first of the two Canadian classics at the end of the season, the GP de Québec. For him, largely a preparation race towards the World Championships - which he won - but it was still an unusual sight. The Slovenian attacked on the steep pitches of the final lap in the Canadian circuit but was matched by Arnaud De Lie and Maxim van Gils. The Lotto Dstny riders worked to make the attack work but the peloton brought them back. Pogacar still had the legs to sprint but settled for a modest seventh place.