"You can ask this question to the entire peloton... Since he started competing, everything has changed," Girmay says with a smile when asked if Pogacar's absence makes a win more likely for the
Intermarché - Wanty star. "I also enjoy tough races, and Pogacar brings a lot of emotion to a race, even among the fans. He is an incredibly friendly guy, and it's a shame he won't be there in the spring, but the entire peloton will be happy that he's not participating, haha."
Speaking of fans, wherever Girmay goes he brings with him a legion of Eritrean support. "I love those fans. Without fans, it's nothing. They give me a lot of strength," he says gratefully, although he realises the extra pressures such support brings. "If I finish second now, they are not happy. That's great, but it also brings pressure. It comes from all sides. In Eritrea, they literally say that I have to win every day. Even when there's a mountain stage on the agenda. They want me to win, always. It only adds to my morale, but sometimes I have to laugh when I read things like that."